Due to the loss of revenue from unmanned traffic cameras, the city is no longer offering drivers education courses to local residents.The city’s popular drivers education program is no longer offering new courses.
Money generated by unmanned speed enforcement cameras was used to fund the program, but a state law enacted earlier this year prohibits the use of most of those cameras throughout Tennessee, leading to the program’s suspension.
“Since its inception in November 2009, close to 3,000 young Chattanoogans have successfully completed the professional defensive driving curriculum and multimodal instruction provided by the City of Chattanooga’s Drivers Education Program,” a news release stated.
One of the bills listed in the release as a cause of the move was sponsored by Sen. Todd Gardenhire, R-Chattanooga, and cited concerns about the legitimacy of unmanned cameras.
The bill argued, among other things, that “the right to face your accuser in court and cross examine witnesses is guaranteed by the United States Bill of Rights, and traffic enforcement cameras deny Tennesseans this right, because the accuser is a machine.”