Members of Tennessee’s House Transportation Committee today agreed for a two-year moratorium on new traffic cameras and renewals of current camera-enforcement contracts.
During that time, the state comptroller will conduct a study on how cameras are used across the state, including the amount of fines in each community.
But the agreement exempts Hamilton County’s steep, winding “S” curves on Hixson Pike.
The committee has been in two days of talks on how to best regulate the cameras with legislators putting forth 10 proposals. Measures to outright ban the cameras or to require a portion of the fines to go toward the state’s cash-strapped trauma centers failed.
However, legislators voted to cap fines at $50 and limit court costs to $10.
Hamilton County legislators on the committee, Rep. Vince Dean, R-East Ridge, and Rep. Richard Floyd, R-Chattanooga, fought hard to stave off any limits on Hixson Pike’s cameras.
“Ten people were killed on that road in 30 months,” Rep. Floyd said. “We have a grammar school, two churches and a subdivision on that road that were not there when it was designed.”
The committee’s votes aren’t binding. The legislators are simply trying to craft legislation that will be further detailed then brought back before the committee for more debate and then a full House and Senate vote.
Changes are possible all throughout that process.
For complete details, see tomorrow’s Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Adam Crisp covers education issues for the Times Free Press. He joined the paper's staff in 2007 and initially covered crime, public safety, courts and general assignment topics. Prior to Chattanooga, Crisp was a crime reporter at the Savannah Morning News and has been a reporter and editor at community newspapers in southeast Georgia. In college, he led his student paper to a first-place general excellence award from the Georgia College Press Association. He earned ...
It's about time someone stepped in on these money traps. They may be useful, but many towns around the state saw green when they found they were available for nearly nothing.
Rep. Floyd commented "We have a grammar school, two churches and a subdivision on that road that were not there when it was designed."
I would like to point out the Hixson Pike is a very long and winding road. It begins at the end of Barton Avenue (in Chattanooga approx. a mile after GPS) and ends at Soddy Lake. What I would like to know is if the statistics that Rep. Floyd quotes pertain to the "S" curve portion or to the ENTIRE stretch of Hixson Pike.
The steep inclines in this area of Hixson Pike inherently encourage increased speed when descending into Hixson or North Chattanooga/Riverview. How many of the ten deaths mentioned were related to true wreckless driving, etc? Could it be argued that some of the wrecks in the "S" curves were caused by poor design? If so, why are citizens subjected to fines for something they have not had a voice in? Tax money doubtlessly helped pay for Hixson Pike, which means that citizens are being charged for the shortcomings of poor engineering and planning.
Or drivers could just slow down and drive the speed limit on the Hixson Pike "S" curves. Funny how so many seem to be able to do it every day without crashing, dying or getting a camera ticket.
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