hillbilly404040
Junior Member
Kingsport, Tennessee
I recently received a ticked in the mail for allegedly running a red light. The cam shot taken shows the front end of my car past the stop bar and in the intersection at that time. Since I could not stop, I continued through the red light. The cams were recently installed and the yellow light is set at 4.25 seconds with an approach speed of 55 MPH. The road was wet since it was drizzling and I couldn't come to a safe stop in that amount of time. After doing some research, I discovered that the guidelines set in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices published by the Federal Highway Administration recommend "a yellow change interval should have a duration of approximately 3 to 6 seconds. The longer intervals should be reserved for use on approaches with higher speeds." Since 55 is the highest speed where a signal light is present, 6 seconds would be appropriate for that intersection. The longer interval would decrease accidents and infractions but would also decrease the revenue collected by the city for red light cams which was over a half of a million dollars in the past year. I requested a hearing on the matter only to discover that it will be tried in the city court. I feel like that is a conflict of interest since the city would be reluctant set a precedence that could cost them future cam light revenue. The letter sent to my setting the hearing date does not say that I allegedly run a red light, it says that I am guilty of a red light violation (what happened to innocent until proven guilty?). Apparently their mind is already made up and I don't think that I could get a fair trial in the city court and since I am from another state, I am not familiar with Tennessee's courts and appeals system. Any help or information on the appeal process would be appreciated.
I recently received a ticked in the mail for allegedly running a red light. The cam shot taken shows the front end of my car past the stop bar and in the intersection at that time. Since I could not stop, I continued through the red light. The cams were recently installed and the yellow light is set at 4.25 seconds with an approach speed of 55 MPH. The road was wet since it was drizzling and I couldn't come to a safe stop in that amount of time. After doing some research, I discovered that the guidelines set in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices published by the Federal Highway Administration recommend "a yellow change interval should have a duration of approximately 3 to 6 seconds. The longer intervals should be reserved for use on approaches with higher speeds." Since 55 is the highest speed where a signal light is present, 6 seconds would be appropriate for that intersection. The longer interval would decrease accidents and infractions but would also decrease the revenue collected by the city for red light cams which was over a half of a million dollars in the past year. I requested a hearing on the matter only to discover that it will be tried in the city court. I feel like that is a conflict of interest since the city would be reluctant set a precedence that could cost them future cam light revenue. The letter sent to my setting the hearing date does not say that I allegedly run a red light, it says that I am guilty of a red light violation (what happened to innocent until proven guilty?). Apparently their mind is already made up and I don't think that I could get a fair trial in the city court and since I am from another state, I am not familiar with Tennessee's courts and appeals system. Any help or information on the appeal process would be appreciated.
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