Automated Enforcement

Question: If an intersection camera ticket is sent to the vehicle's owner, do they get penalty points on their licence? I found a web post that says you only get penalty points if you were caught by a cop. Is that true?

The Intersection Safety Camera (ISC) program operates 140 digital cameras installed at high-risk intersections throughout BC to enforce red light running offences. 35 of these cameras also enforce speeding offences.

This case from the provincial court in North Vancouver shows that licence plate evidence is critical to a ticket issued through the use of an Intersection Safety Camera. If the photo of the offending vehicle's licence plate is not clear enough to show it is a BC licence plate the ticket will be dismissed.

Here is another video from Road Guy Rob who explains about how red light cameras know when to take a picture of a red light runner. It explains how engineers build a camera system that takes pictures of vehicles that don't stop when they must. Called Intersection Safety Cameras in British Columbia, there are currently 140 of them installed at intersections with a high crash risk from red light runners.

Question: I lost my license so I added a new principal driver to my insurance. He has a valid license and he will be driving my car for the time I'm suspended. Will my licence plate still be flagged if they are scanned by automated license plate recognition (ALPR)?

The state of New South Wales, Australia has just tightened their rules on intersection safety camera violations. Companies were not nominating the drivers of their vehicles who were responsible for the violations as that state requires. This amounted to approximately 7,000 events that drivers were not held accountable for.

I frequently drive both the Trans Canada Highway up the Malahat and onwards to Duncan and back to North Saanich where I live. The Malahat is a dangerous part of the highway, has been forever and yet most, and I emphasize, MOST People, far exceed the speed limit.

Love 'em or hate 'em, intersection safety cameras that measure vehicle speed along with red light violations are part of the solution to reduce crashes on BC highways. Dr. Werner Antweiler of UBC's Sauder School of Business has written an analysis of "speed on green" cameras. He quotes Professor Richard Allsop's report from research conducted in Great Britain:

Question: What are the technical details surrounding the use of red light cameras at intersections? Would you could explain for the general public the technicalities of red light camera usage and exactly when they should or should not worry about getting a ticket?