Seattle wants to expand traffic camera tickets to include other violations

BY CHRIS SULLIVAN
OCTOBER 30, 2018 AT 10:11 AM

Red light cameras and speed zone cameras might be getting some company on Seattle’s streets as Mayor Jenny Durkan plans to expand their use into other violations.

What is one of the worst problems in downtown Seattle? It’s blocking-the-box. People who pull into the intersection, knowing that they will be blocking traffic, just so they can squeeze in on the next light.

We see this problem on steroids on Mercer with lines as long as two or three cars deep encroaching in the intersections. We see buses do it all the time. We see pedestrians crossing against the lights, preventing turns. It’s an epidemic.

That said, on Mercer for example, if you don’t try to squeeze in, you might not move.

Mayor Durkan will attack blocking-the-box with more enforcement.

“We will be enforcing our traffic laws that restrict mobility, whether it’s a pedestrian, a bike, or a bus,” she said. “We will be doing more enforcement on blocking bus lanes, blocking bike lanes and blocking the intersections.”

To accomplish this goal, the mayor wants to expand photo enforcement. She wants to put in cameras that will produce tickets for drivers who block the box or other lanes.

“We will be going to Olympia to see if we can get the authority to do that with camera enforcement,” Mayor Durkan said. “We know that if a police officer pulls a car over in the middle of the busiest intersection because they block the bike lane or block the box or block the bus that it just backs traffic up.”

*Article Courtesy of MyNorthwest.com