The bill authorizing automated traffic cameras in six test cities passed by a large margin in the State Assembly.
A proposal to legalize traffic cameras in some California cities passed the State Assembly and awaits approval from the State Senate, reports Steve Scauzillo in Los Angeles Daily News.
Scauzillo explains, “Assembly Bill 645, authored by Assemblymember Laura Friedman, D-Glendale, authorizes ‘speed camera’ pilot programs in school zones and on high-injury streets with speeding problems in six cities, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Glendale, Oakland, San Jose and San Francisco.”
The bill received widespread bipartisan support in the Assembly as traffic deaths in California and around the country reach alarmingly high numbers. “In California, the pedestrian fatality rate is nearly 25% higher than the national average. In 2021 alone, 4,258 Californians died in traffic collisions, a 10.7% increase from the previous year.”
Automated enforcement is widely credited with reducing deaths and serious injuries. An Ottawa study showed a quadrupling of compliance with speed limits near one school, and “In Scottsdale, Arizona and Portland, Oregon traffic fatalities have fallen 54% since the cameras were instituted. In Washington D.C, traffic fatalities decreased by 70%.”
FULL STORY: Speed camera bill gets Assembly approval, now it’s up to state Senate, governor
DC’s Traffic Cameras Are Working, but Not a Panacea
Automated enforcement is reducing speeding, but bigger changes to street design and the built environment are needed to make the District’s streets safer and more pleasant for people walking.
D.C. Could Expand Traffic Camera Program
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser wants to add hundreds of new traffic enforcement cameras to stem the city's rising rate of traffic fatalities.
Iowa Outlaws Most Automated Speed Cameras
The Iowa Department of Transportation has rejected a majority of applications to continue speed camera programs in cities across the state based on a new state law that requires state-issued permits for automated traffic enforcement.
Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?
USDOT Repeals Emissions Monitoring Rule
A Biden-era regulation required states to report and plan to reduce transportation-related emissions.
CaBi Breaks Ridership Record — Again
Washington D.C.’s bike share system is extremely popular with both residents and visitors.
San Francisco Opens Park on Former Great Highway
The Sunset Dunes park’s grand opening attracted both fans and detractors.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service