Serial red-light runner with 60 traffic violations captured on Tempe traffic cams

TEMPE, Ariz. - Tempe’s first year of red-light cameras has captured extreme speeding and a serial offender with 60 violations.

What we know:

A year into Tempe’s photo enforcement program, the numbers are high, including one "serial offender" who has been caught on camera more than 60 times.

Every month, tens of thousands of red-light cameras flash in Tempe. The majority are thrown out, but some get sent to the driver for a ticket. Then there is another collection of violations set aside for the ones that really stand out over and over again. 

How It Works:

Six employees at the Tempe Police Department review the flashes. If it captured a true violation, they look for a photo of the driver's face. If that matches the registration and license photo, it is likely being sent out. If not, it might get thrown out. 

Since the program started in June, 54,262 drivers have received citations. Around 80,521 more received notices of violations, which means they went to rental car companies or a business that a car is registered with instead of individuals. 

Local perspective:

"So it's red, and he hasn’t even hit the stop bar or the crosswalk yet, so that’s a good red-light violation," Tom Haubold, the traffic program supervisor with Tempe Police, said regarding footage of a red-light runner.

That driver will likely be getting a citation thanks to the 1-year-old red-light cameras in Tempe. 

But one car in particular, in the tens of thousands of camera clicks, keeps coming up— a driver with roughly 60 violations who hasn't received a single citation yet. 

"The person drives a car with out-of-state plates, out-of-state license. I have been able to get a photo of the person. I know who it is now, but I don't have a good address yet," Haubold said. "We just haven't been lucky enough yet, but we'll get 'em."

Dig deeper:

He says they are close. But the top speeder the cameras captured the first year was a motorcyclist traveling 143 mph.

"This is right in front of Marcos de Niza High School, and it was at 4:12 in the afternoon," Haubold said.

The motorcyclist was charged with criminal speeding. 

Big picture view:

Month over month, red-light tickets have remained steady.

"We’re at a year, and we’re really not seeing much changes. It’s kind of surprising," Haubold said.

But crashes of all kinds have decreased—specifically at the 14 intersections where the cameras are located. That makes pedestrians feel safer. 

"Five days out of the week, 20, 30 people get flashed a day going maybe 15 over the speed limit get flashed," Nathan Byrne of Tempe said.

Haubold believes the impact is clear: "If these systems save even one life, it's worth it."

What's next:

There is currently a backlog of about 13,000 violations that the team of seven is working through. They have to work fast because they say after 60 days they run out of time to deliver them.