We have a need for speed… cameras
More principled objections have included the possibility of disparate enforcement if cameras are located in predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods; concerns that police would deploy the cameras in a way designed to raise revenue instead of addressing genuine safety concerns; and some research suggesting that red-light cameras can result in more of certain types of accidents.
The governor's proposal, which came as part of her budget and requires legislative approval, includes safeguards to address some of those concerns. First, the cameras would only be used for speeding, not red-light violations; the state would limit how many cameras each municipality would be allowed; and towns and cities would have to 'ensure social and racial equity in the implementation' of their cameras.
Personally, I don't need convincing. As I wrote last month,
As the Globe's Matt Stout
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That's a minor quibble, though. Overall, Healey's proposal would be a big step in the right direction. It builds on two more limited automated enforcement laws the Legislature approved recently, one that allows camera enforcement of bus lanes and another that allows cameras on school buses to catch people illegally passing stopped school buses.
On Rte 2A near Commerford Road, Concord, a sign asks drivers to reduce speed.
David L. Ryan/Globe Staff
There's also a more philosophical objection to camera laws like those, and it boils down to values: Do we want to live under so much government surveillance? Even if each individual camera law is a reasonable response to a real problem, do they all add up to excessive intrusion?
There's no empirically right or wrong answer to that question. The real solution is to make the tradeoff between safety and surveillance unnecessary. Hopefully someday, when there's a better way to control speeding (like, say, well-behaved self-driving cars), those cameras won't be necessary. For now, though, there's a growing consensus that they are
.
This is an excerpt from
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Alan Wirzbicki is Globe deputy editor for editorials. He can be reached at
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