(The Center Square) – Illinois State Rep. La Shawn Ford is once again calling for change after new data shows that more than 2.5 times as many red light camera tickets were issued over a year on Chicago’s South Side than at intersections where cameras were installed in the city’s North Side.
Data analyzed by the Illinois Policy Institute on the 614,498 tickets issued citywide — accounting for $61.4 million in fines through September — shows that red-light cameras on the South Side issued an average of 9,132 tickets, or 5,521 more than any north side camera.
“It’s clearly a money grab and it’s not fair,” Ford, D-Chicago, told The Center Square. “The question is: Are people on the South Side of Chicago driving to the extent that they deserve to be disproportionately affected by a system, or is the system flawed? I would like to call on the city to investigate.”
Now that Chicago is home to more red-light cameras than any other major city in the country, and a recent ProPublica survey shows that residents of the city’s inner-city neighborhoods are being hit the hardest, Ford wonders how long much of those who are among the most vulnerable can survive the attack.
“The tickets are one problem, but the impact these tickets have on families is devastating,” he said. “If I get multiple tickets and I am placed on a trunk list, my car will be towed and I will lose my car. Then I have these tickets and I have to file for bankruptcy to cancel the debt. The government should not have the task of driving people into poverty. We know that this regressive tax hits people in poverty harder and drives people deeper into poverty.”
Ford has previously called for a moratorium on the cameras, including after a recent report from the Chicago Tribune highlighted that the Illinois Department of Transportation found that more than half of the intersections where the cameras were installed before their installation were among the safest corners belonged to the state.
“There should be a thorough investigation to explain this because we know that when you compare traffic stops by people, we found there was a reason behind it,” Ford said. “People were racially profiled. We have to wonder why residents of Chicago’s South Side receive three times as many tickets. I think the public deserves transparency and explanation as to whether there are more opportunities for this population to be ticketed.”
Ford added that he is now working with fellow attorneys to draft a proposal that could lead to new legislation further regulating the introduction of traffic cameras.
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