Have you noticied those big camera's posted at major intersections around town that say RedFlex on the side? Want to know more about them and how to handle a ticket if you get one sent to you in the mail? There is a website called highwayrobbery.net that you can visit to get more info. Apparently in some cities in California, the local police are sending people "fake" tickets [1] to pull in extra revenue. Modesto isn't on the list of cities that are doing that, but even so, you should learn about the differences between a real and a fake ticket.
If you want to see the brochure for the RedFlex Camera system's, here is a link to the pdf. [2]
What to do if you get sent a ticket for running a Red Light Camera.
The City's contract with RedFlex was signed on June 8, 2004, and includes a "cost neutrality" clause, whereby the city will not have to pay RedFlex the full rent if there aren't enough fines to cover the cost. (Other cities with similar clauses are Capitola, Davis, Gardena, Laguna Woods, Loma Linda, Los Alamitos, Murrieta, Paramount, Rocklin, San Leandro, San Mateo, and Union City. See Defect # 10.)
Many RedFlex towns send out "Snitch Tickets," which you can ignore. A Snitch Ticket will not have the Superior Court's name and address on it. For more details, see the Snitch Ticket section [3] on the Your Ticket page.
Tentative turn-on of system was Dec. 1, 2004. A MPD staff report to the city council is at: Staff Report.
Here is some information from a MPD press release of Feb. 23, 2005:
"Red light cameras are scheduled to be turned on at the intersection of Sisk Road and Standiford Avenue on March 1st. Installation and planning at other key intersections in the City of Modesto is underway. The contract with Redflex allows the installation of up to 10 systems, some of which are underway. The program will be self-funded by the revenue generated by fines. The fine for each violation is $340, of that, $149.75 returns to the City of Modesto. This revenue will be used to pay the $6,030 monthly fee charged by RedFlex to maintain each intersection. “This project is intended to be cost neutral to the taxpayers of Modesto,�? said Lieutenant Dan Inderbitzen, Traffic Unit Commander.
Signs will be posted at each intersection equipped with the cameras, notifying motorists of the enforcement."
Map of Locations
This map was provided by a Modesto resident, and was current as of June 27, 2005.
All information is from http://www.highwayrobbery.net/redlightcamsdocsModestoMain.html [4]