Can a community use a surveillance camera to ticket red-light runners?

March 3, 2008

Q: Can a community use a surveillance camera to ticket red-light runners?

A: A number of Massachusetts communities, including Boston, Brockton, Rockland, Saugus and Springfield, have indicated that they wish to use automated cameras to monitor traffic intersections, according to recent news reports. The cameras would photograph the license plate of a vehicle running a red light, and the city or town would send a citation to the car owner’s address. The citation would be similar to a parking ticket—citing the vehicle rather than the driver—so it would not affect auto insurance rates.

State law, however, requires that a moving violation such as running a red light must be counted as an insurance surcharge offense against the driver. So issuing a citation to the vehicle, without insurance consequences, would be in violation of state law. For a ticket to be issued, state law also requires a police officer to observe, or bring to another officer’s attention, the alleged motor vehicle infraction, which would also preclude the use of cameras.

Two bills have been filed in the Legislature that, taken together, would allow Massachusetts communities to use traffic cameras to ticket red-light runners. The first (H. 1112) would remove the insurance surcharge requirement, allowing cities and towns to cite a vehicle, rather than a driver, for a traffic infraction caught by a surveillance camera. The second (H. 3512) would authorize cities and towns to use monitoring cameras as a means for promoting traffic safety and enforcing motor vehicle regulations. Under the terms of the bill, local police could use the photographs as the basis for ticketing red-light runners; officers would not need to be present when the violation occurs. H. 1112 has been referred to the Joint Committee on Financial Services; H. 3512 was referred to the Joint Committee on Transportation.

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