City Announces Speed Camera Test Sites
By Chuck Sudo in News on Nov 26, 2012 5:20PM
The City Department of Emergency Management and Communications announced today they’ll be conducting a month-long test of speed cameras at four sites across Chicago. No tickets will be issued during the tests; this is mainly to test out the separate technology platforms of the two finalists for the highly coveted speed camera contract.
The four locations where the tests will occur are:
• McKinley Park, at approximately 2223 W. Pershing Road
• Warren Park, at approximately 6541 N. Western Ave
• Dulles Elementary School, at approximately 6340 S. King Drive
• Near North Montessori School, at approximately 1446 W. Division
The zones will be in place from Dec. 3 through Jan. 3. Mayor Rahm Emanuel has championed the speed camera ordinance as a safety measure, but the revenue the city could earn from tickets issued to motorists for speeding through these zones could be a boon for the city’s coffers. Chicago residents have their reservations as to whether speed cameras will reduce traffic accidents. The controversial ordinance could cover half of Chicago in speed cameras, although CDOT has insisted that won’t happen. The contract was placed out to bid after the Tribune reported in March that Emanuel ally Greg Goldner worked as a lobbyist for the company that had the city’s red light camera contract. Emanuel later tossed that Redflex Camera Systems’ bid for the speed cameras after the Tribune reported the company paid for a 2010 hotel bill for former CDOT managing deputy commissioner John Bills, widely considered to be the department's expert on the automated enforcement system.