Former PM Helen Clark calls for action on out-of-commission red light cameras
Monday, 28 May 2018
Former prime minister Helen Clark is calling for action to be taken on implementing working red light cameras.
Her criticisms come after Stuff revealed New Zealand has only three working fixed red light cameras - one in Wellington and two in Auckland, with all three of them operated by police.
The data, obtained under the Official Information Act, showed those cameras issued a total of 2300 tickets last year.
In contrast, none of the cameras installed by Auckland Council-owned Auckland Transport at 21 intersections has issued a ticket since late 2015. For the newer ones, this is due to software issues, and the older cameras have outdated technology, which is no longer supported by police.
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'Most red light camera in Auckland haven't worked for years, nor led to traffic tickets being issued,' Clark wrote on Twitter on Sunday.
Road safety and enforcement in Auckland seemed to have 'slipped,' she said.
'This lack of enforcement against red light running puts pedestrians, cyclists and other vehicles at great risk.Time for action!'
Last year, five people in Auckland died in crashes involving running red lights, compared with a total of four deaths in the previous five years.
Auckland's red-light crash figures have steadily climbed to 477 last year, compared with 387 reported crashes in 2012.
This all comes as a new report shows Auckland's road safety is reaching crisis point and the road toll in the city is out of sync with the rest of the country.
The review, commissioned by AT in 2017 and released this month, noted road safety in Auckland 'could legitimately be described as a crisis'.
The report recommended installing more cameras to catch the city's brazen red light-runners.