Significant citywide crash reductions followed the introduction of red light cameras in Oxnard, California. This is the key finding of the first U.S. research on the effects of camera enforcement on intersection crashes. The study was conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Injury crashes at intersections with traffic signals were reduced 29 percent after camera enforcement began in Oxnard in 1997. Front-into-side collisions — the crash type that’s most closely associated with red light running — were reduced 32 percent overall, and front-into-side crashes involving injuries were reduced 68 percent.
These results represent more than a single city’s success story.
