HANNIBAL MO -- Driving through Hannibal, you've probably seen someone running a red light. Maybe you've done it yourself. And Hannibal Police are catching on. In fact, the department conducted a traffic study to confirm what they've been seeing.
"We have an extensive problem with motorists violating the intersection by running red lights up and down US 61 and it appears to be at a high volume," police Chief Lyndell Davis said.
In the 24-hour period that the study was conducted, 63 vehicles were seen running the red lights at the intersection of Highway 61 and Route 168. Another 56 cars committed this crime at the Highway 61 and West Ely-Pleasant Street intersection. These crossings are also notorious for accidents. So Chief Davis wants this running habit to stop.
"What we're trying to do is reduce the number of accidents. Because even if you're the one person that gets hit-- do you want that to happen? So we're doing whatever we can to reduce the threat and increase public safety," Davis said.
Davis will go before the Hannibal City Council, and recommend that red light cameras go up at those locations to help curb the problem. That way, police will have 24-7 coverage of violations and gain video proof of red-light runners.
"It takes an assortment of pictures of the vehicle, of the driver, and of the intersection," Davis said.
The department checked with the cities of Wentzville and St. Peters, which have already installed red light cameras. They and other cities have noticed between a 40 and 60 percent reduction in light running and accidents. For that, Davis says its worth the city's investment to install them.
And Chief Davis says the cost of buying and running the cameras will be minimal. That's because those expenses are paid by a portion of the ticket money, which gets sent to the camera company.
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