Cameras once monitored as many as ten intersections in Austin, TX. According to the Austin Police Department’s car accident statistics, they reduced collisions at these intersections by as much as 41%. However, there are currently no traffic and red light cameras in Austin due to a law passed in 2019 banning these systems.
No one knows whether drivers changed their behaviors after these systems were disabled. However, car accidents at Austin intersections injure or kill dozens of pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists annually.
Austin car accident lawyers from McMinn Personal Injury Lawyers help victims and their families recover compensation for their crash-related losses. If you’ve been injured in a car accident in Austin, Texas, contact us for a free consultation at (512) 474-0222.
For two decades, McMinn Personal Injury Lawyers has helped injured people in Austin, Texas, fight for injury compensation. Our attorneys have over 40 years of experience standing up to insurers and at-fault parties on behalf of injured clients. Since its founding, the firm has successfully recovered over $500 million in settlements and court awards.
When someone injures you due to their negligent, intentional, or wrongful acts, our firm provides the following services:
You may face serious health and financial difficulties due to your car accident injuries. Contact McMinn Personal Injury Lawyers for a free consultation with an Austin car accident attorney to discuss how we help victims pursue full and fair accident compensation.
Austin used red light cameras starting in 2009. Under the law at the time, the city had to complete two steps before installing cameras. First, it had to conduct a traffic engineering study to try to identify alternatives to automated cameras for reducing intersection crashes. Austin never performed the required research.
Second, it had to enter into a contract with the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles to suspend vehicle registrations when drivers failed to pay the tickets issued by red light cameras. Austin also failed to complete this step. Thus, the city’s red light camera system was arguably operating outside of legally mandated requirements between 2009 and 2019.
Austin was not the only city operating an automated citation system without completing the law’s prerequisites. One news report only found that three cities conducted the required traffic engineering study out of the 50 cities with red light cameras that responded to its open records request. The news report concluded that most camera systems in the state were non-compliant.
In 2019, the state changed its law to prohibit cities from using these systems. The change may have been spurred by widespread non-compliance with the old law and concerns about the lack of due process afforded by the automated systems.
Regardless of the reason, cities had to cease the use of the systems unless they had contracts with camera suppliers and operators that could not be terminated early. Since Austin had no such contract, it ended its relationship with its camera contractor and turned off its system.
The new law only affected cameras used to automatically issue traffic citations for red light violations. The ban did not affect traffic cameras used to monitor congestion and identify accident locations. These cameras are legal and continue to be used by large cities throughout Texas.
Thus, in theory, the cameras still in use could be used to identify a vehicle that caused a hit-and-run accident. They might also gather footage that your accident lawyer can use to prove liability for a collision.
According to the state’s crash statistics, Texas had 559,329 vehicle collisions in a recent one year period. Of these, the state identified 21,738 crashes caused by drivers who disregarded stop-and-go signals and 16,484 collisions by drivers who disregarded stop signs or lights. Based on these numbers, just over 9% of crashes were attributed to drivers who ran red lights or stop signs.
Red light cameras can help to prove liability for crashes resulting from red light violations. If a driver automatically received a ticket for running a red light, it can show that they acted negligently in negotiating the intersection. Moreover, these cameras could provide photographic evidence of what happened and insight into the condition of the lights during the collision.
However, Austin car accident lawyers have many other tools for proving liability for an intersection crash. Drivers’ statements, eyewitness accounts, and citations issued by the responding officers can provide evidence of what occurred. If necessary, a crash victim’s lawyer can even hire an expert witness to reconstruct the accident to scientifically determine the crash’s cause.
Proving the cause of an accident can be challenging with or without automated citation systems. In Texas, most personal injury claims must be filed within two years of the accident. Act quickly to avoid losing your right to compensation.
Contact McMinn Personal Injury Lawyers for a free consultation to discuss how we seek to prove liability for your accident that rests with the other driver as you pursue injury compensation.
