Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
Houston

Crashes Doubled After Houston Banned Red Light Cameras

Collisions increased dramatically after Houston banned red light cameras. Chart: Houston Police Department
Collisions increased dramatically after Houston banned red light cameras. Chart: Houston Police Department
Collisions increased dramatically after Houston banned red light cameras. Chart: Houston Police Department

Law enforcement officers warned there would likely be an uptick in collisions when Houston debated banning red light cameras in the early part of the decade. Turns out they were absolutely right.

Houston voters banned the life-saving technology in 2010, with the press mostly cheering them along. Last year Houston PD examined how that's impacted safety at intersections. According to department data [PDF], their predictions have been borne out.

The HPD data contrasted crash figures from 2006 to 2010 -- when the cameras were in operation -- and from 2010 to 2014, after they were banned and removed. At the intersections that formerly had cameras, fatal crashes jumped 30 percent. Meanwhile, total crashes were up 116 percent. And DWI crashes nearly tripled, increasing by 186 percent.

Houstonians are now safe from $75 fines, but according to the National Coalition for Safer Roads, Houston now carries the dubious distinction of being the most dangerous city in America for red light running. Between 2004 and 2013, 181 people were killed in the city as the result of failure to comply with traffic lights.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Krakow is a Polish Pedestrian Paradise

Check out how car drivers simply stop for pedestrians — and not just pedestrians in a crosswalk, but also pedestrians about to enter a crosswalk or even just thinking about maybe entering a crosswalk.

July 25, 2025

Friday Video: The Secret to Getting People Biking In a Hilly City

Steep streets don't have to put a stop to your city's cycling future.

July 25, 2025

Friday’s Headlines Look to the Future

Despite some minor reforms around the edges under President Biden, U.S. transportation remains a car-centric anachronism.

July 25, 2025

Talking Headways Podcast: Measuring Transportation System Success

Karel Martens on how transportation engineering is good at finding problems but not solving them — and a new tool to measure policy success.

July 24, 2025

What Will It Take to Automatically Brick Drivers’ Cell Phones Behind the Wheel?

The technology to stop cell phone use behind the wheel has existed for years. Why are so few drivers using it – and why aren't lawmakers making them?

July 24, 2025

Thursday’s Headlines See Mixed Results

It's easier to commit to Vision Zero as a concept than it is to actually implement its principles.

July 24, 2025
See all posts