More red-light cameras are coming to Philly streets, including one by the Rocky statue

Red-light enforcement cameras now guard 34 intersections in the city and more are due to be installed soon, including one near the world-famous Rocky statue, the Philadelphia Parking Authority said in its annual report on the program.

Overall, the cameras issued 267,686 tickets for running red lights in the 2022 fiscal year, which ended June 30 — an increase of 25% compared with the same period the previous year, PPA said.

Growing traffic volume as pandemic restrictions recede as well as the December addition of cameras at two intersections likely account for the uptick, officials said. They said violations tend to drop over time at longer-established sites. Violations result in a $100 fine — but no points against a license — for motorists caught on camera driving through a red light.

“We are a public safety agency too,” said Beth C. Grossman, chairwoman of the Parking Authority. The red-light cameras are “really about saving lives and changing driver behavior,” she said.

In addition to the camera near Rocky, at the intersection of Eakins Oval and Kelly Drive, PPA plans to install red-light cameras at three other places by January: 58th Street and Baltimore Avenue, North Front Street and Hunting Park Avenue, and North 20th Street and John F. Kennedy Boulevard.

City Council and the mayor must approve the placement of each automated red-light enforcement device. Sites are chosen by PPA in consultation with city transportation officials after detailed safety studies.

Residents and political leaders have requested red-light enforcement cameras at 53 intersections in neighborhoods throughout the city, PPA said in the report.

But there also is pushback against automated enforcement of red-light violations or speed limits from many motorists, who consider the programs purely revenue-makers for city and state governments. They also point to instances where cameras have been improperly calibrated, sometimes resulting in erroneous fines.

Independent research has found that red-light cameras have decreased crashes in some respects, especially side-impact or “T-bone” crashes, at intersections but not in others. For instance, there is some evidence of an increase in dangerous rear-end crashes, presumably from drivers stopping quickly to avoid a ticket.

“Pennsylvania has one purpose with automated traffic enforcement, to blanket the state with these devices and make money from mostly safe drivers,” James Sikorski Jr., the state advocate for the National Motorists Association, said in an interview earlier this year.

PPA says that logically, a reduction in violations makes roads safer, citing experiences with red-light cameras on Roosevelt Boulevard, where they have been in place the longest.

The authority, an arm of the state, runs the red-light program and also operates speed cameras on Roosevelt Boulevard. The two safety measures were authorized by the legislature in 2005 and 2020, respectively.

After subtracting the expenses of running the red-light program, PPA sends the money to PennDot for traffic-safety project grants. Last year, the authority collected $23 million in red-light violations and sent $15.5 million to the state.

Last year, money was distributed to 22 municipalities to fund 28 safety projects across the state, including in Bucks, Montgomery, and Delaware Counties. Philadelphia got $6.5 million for protected bike lanes, intersection revisions, bus boarding islands, and other safety improvements.

“It’s not this ‘money grab,’ ” said Corinne O’Connor, deputy executive director of PPA. “It’s being put back into the roads and making them safer.”