Drive carefully!  Big brother is watching!  Five new red light cameras were installed and become operational today.  Three intersections are in College Park, one is on International Drive and the other is near Orlando International Airport. There are now a dozen intersections in Orlando with red light cameras and drivers caught running through them will be fined at least $125. Since the cameras were installed last year, the city has issued more than 30,000 citations and generated $3.8 million.

City leaders say they chose to set up cameras at three intersections in College Park because it is an area where they see the heaviest number of accidents. There is a camera to catch drivers on Princeton crossing over Edgewater and there is a camera set up on Edgewater to catch red light runners crossing over Princeton. 

Without addressing the politics over where the money is going, city leaders believe the red light cameras work because their numbers show there has been a 33 percent reduction in red light runners at the intersections with camera and they are issuing ten percent fewer fines. 

Please see our prior blog on the effect of Red Light cameras.