Chicago’s thousands of surveillance and ‘red light’ smart cameras

[From Chicago’s thousands of surveillance and ‘red light’ smart cameras | WBEZ]

Here is a link to a recent radio interview with me. Its a broad talk about the network in Chicago as well as touching on red light cameras. Here is their copy:

Former Secretary of U.S. Homeland Security Michael Chertoff once said, "I don’t think there is another city in the U.S. that has an extensive and integrated camera network as Chicago has." Chicago may be the most heavily surveilled city in the nation. Surveillance and smart cameras, like the so called “red light cameras”, number in the thousands. If you add in private camera networks the city has potential access to, the number could jump into the tens of thousands.

And a report last year by the Illinois chapter of the ACLU, titled Chicago's Video Surveillance Cameras: A Pervasive and Unregulated Threat to Our Privacy, warns Chicagoans of potential threats to privacy under the watchful eyes of the city's growing surveillance camera system.

Today, Worldview talks with Rajiv Shah, an adjunct professor at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Shah specializes in public policy implications from the design of communication technology. His main focus is video surveillance. Rajiv writes about Chicago’s camera and video surveillance culture in his blogs, Eyeing Chicago and InHardFocus.

Mayor's speed camera stats sketchy - Chicago Tribune

[From Mayor's speed camera stats sketchy - Chicago Tribune]

Speed cameras are now the new camera technology that Chicago is considering. The justification for these cameras according to the major is "that traffic deaths in Chicago had plummeted 60 percent near red-light cameras, cousins of the speed-detecting devices." (Those following my research probably recognize these claims as outlandish).

The article goes on:

Presented with that conclusion, the Emanuel administration this week reversed course and said its initial statistical summary was error-ridden and shouldn't have been provided in the first place.

Denied the city's research, the Tribune performed its own analysis using city traffic data provided to the federal government and came to a very different and less dramatic conclusion.

Instead of the 60 percent reduction the mayor touted, the Tribune's analysis of accidents for the same locations revealed a nearly 26 percent reduction — one that mirrored a broader accident trend in the city and across the nation.

The mayor "inadvertently handed out a working document showing a set of incorrect numbers," Kubly said Monday. "I think it was an honest mistake."

Speed Cameras

Chicago Red Light Camera Study Shows Mixed Results | theexpiredmeter.com

[From Chicago Red Light Camera Study Shows Mixed Results | theexpiredmeter.com]

The Expired Meter has some new data on red light cameras obtained through a FOIA from the Chicago Department of Transportation. The results are very similar to my earlier study on red light cameras. Click over to see their complete analysis.

The study does use later 2009 data, where the city had changed the definition of accident, so we need to keep that in mind

Some highlights:

CDOT did a study of 96 intersections utilizing RLC enforcement and compared crash data for each intersection for two years before the cameras were installed with crash data for the two years after installation.

Surprisingly, in the aggregate, total crashes were virtually unchanged dropping only a fraction of one percent from 2,072 crashes before the cameras were installed to 2,066 crashes after installation.

When broken out by crash type, right angle collisions declined from 543 crashes before cameras to 390 after cameras or a 28% reduction. However, rear end crashes went from 485 before cameras to 697 after cameras–a nearly 44% increase. However, Shah points out if one looks at overall crash trends, the city’s drop in right angle crashes is nearly identical to the 27.7% decrease in overall crashes reported by CDOT for the same time period and therefore the gains in reducing right angle crashes cannot be completely attributed to the cameras.

In the Know: Chicago's Spy in the Sky | WBEZ

[From In the Know: Chicago's Spy in the Sky | WBEZ]

I was on a panel on Chicago under surveillance. One of the main issues discussed was speed cameras. I pointed out that the red light cameras have not proved to be significant safety benefit, and we should be cautious regarding the city's claims on the safety benefits of speed cameras. You can listen to the panel above:

Panelists include the director for CeaseFire Illinois, Tio Hardiman, 39th Ward Chicago Alderman Margaret Laurino, and Rajiv Shah, assistant professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Illinois at Chicago, whose research seeks to understand the relationship between the design of information technologies and society. The discussion is moderated by journalist Laura Washington.

Media

In Chicago cabs, more cameras will be along for ride

[From In Chicago cabs, more cameras will be along for ride - Chicago Tribune]

I saw a recent story how this came up in Baltimore and thought I needed to post it.

In an effort to thwart crimes against cabdrivers, thousands of small security cameras will be installed in taxis across the city in the next few years to photograph passengers as they get in and out of the vehicles. Some taxi cab owners have hailed the high-tech move, launched by a change in city ordinances three years ago, as a welcome alternative to ineffective plastic partitions that have been a mainstay of cabs for decades.

About 1,000 cameras have been installed in cabs so far, but more are coming. One of the largest companies predicts all of its cabs will have cameras by 2012. The tiny camera sits above the rear-view mirror and takes a panoramic picture of the cab when someone enters, or when the fare meter is turned on, and as they leave. Cabs must have signs informing passengers they will be photographed. Drivers who feel threatened can push a panic button to get more pictures of the passengers.

City officials tried to quell such crimes in 1997 by requiring that cabs be fitted with bullet-resistant partitions. But many drivers say the partitions are useless. Most don't keep the partitions closed because they're cumbersome and restrict ventilation. And they say the partitions are awkward for passengers, who scrape their knees as they get in and out of the vehicles, and for drivers, who can't move their seats back. In the end, cabdrivers say, the partitions didn't prevent crime.

More than 3,000 cameras now at CTA stations - Chicago Sun-Times

[From More than 3,000 cameras now at CTA stations - Chicago Sun-Times]

This is an older story, but want to make sure I post it. The CTA now has over 3,000 cameras across its 144 stations

Three-to-five dedicated Chicago Police officers monitor the feeds from the 3,000 cameras at any given time, Cmdr. John Graeber said.

They helped snare the alleged Indian Head Park murderer, two other accused killers and 44 other suspects since June.

Live feeds are also piped into the 911 call center and into each police district, though the cameras are mostly used after the fact to search for evidence, CTA president Forrest Claypool said. Police have sought footage in 153 cases since Emanuel announced the upgrade in June, he said.

2 Investigators: The Red-Light Cameras That Generate The Most Tickets « CBS Chicago

[From 2 Investigators: The Red-Light Cameras That Generate The Most Tickets « CBS Chicago]

CBS Chicago investigated the revenue raised by red light cameras. The cameras bring in $61 million a year for Chicago. Some snippets:

Since the city first installed red-light cameras eight years ago, the intersection at 99th and Halsted has raised the most revenue over that period — $8.6 million in fines paid for 99,975 tickets.

Belmont and Kedzie, with 75,259 tickets; Kostner and North Avenue, with 62,530; and Hollywood and Sheridan, with 57,870 tickets issued.

“My own research has shown that red light cameras do not offer a significant safety benefit,” University of Illinois Prof. Rajiv Shah says. “I think the purpose of the red light cameras, the way they’re being used now is to raise revenues for cities.”

The article also includes links to data on the top suburban and urban red light camera intersections.

When Police Abuse Surveillance Cameras - Politics - The Atlantic Cities

[From When Police Abuse Surveillance Cameras - Politics - The Atlantic Cities]

A chilling account of how cameras were manipulated by the Chicago police:

In the wee hours of June 13, 2009, a Chicago camera scanning a West Side neighborhood recorded a small, rowdy party taking place in a vacant lot. A young man standing in a nearby yard also comes into focus.

All of a sudden, the camera's circuitous route is interrupted, diverted back to the party and then pointed at an empty stretch of sidewalk. It stays on that spot for about 10 minutes, and when it returns to its regular rotation we see not one, not 10, but 19 police cars on the street next to the party. In the intervening period, police had arrived in force to break up a fight.

Torri Hamilton, the lawyer of the young man who had been standing in the yard – and was subsequently charged with resisting arrest, though later cleared – says police officers went in with mace and billy clubs to disperse the crowd.

Chicago's police-run crime cameras require manual control to be diverted from their usual scan. To Hamilton, the re-positioning of this camera, at essentially nothing, suggests the police, after receiving a call about the fight, had diverted the camera so that their use of force would not be recorded.

Jody Weis, former head of the Chicago Police Department, concurs with this diagnosis. He told a reporter from radio station WBEZ: Weis says it's not too much of a stretch to think officers would divert the cameras. He says when he was in charge they had a problem with officers turning off the cameras in their cars, "and I think it was because people had a fear, we don't want this camera recording what we're doing and I don't know how many times I spent and said 'Guys, if you're doing your job correctly this camera's your greatest friend.'"

Accidents Increase At Kansas City Red Light Camera Intersections? | theexpiredmeter.com

[From Accidents Increase At Kansas City Red Light Camera Intersections? | theexpiredmeter.com]

I am trying to catch up on some of the big stories over the last few months. Here is another one.

Some interesting facts:

In 2009 and 2010, car accidents decreased in Kansas City and across the state of Missouri.

But according to the Kansas City Star at most KC intersections outfitted with red light cameras, crashes have actually risen over the past two years. At least that’s what a study released by the Kansas City Police Department says after they studied over 2500 car crashes at RLC intersections within the city.

The story quotes UIC Professor Rajiv Shah, who conducted a similar study of Chicago’s red light camera program.

The results didn’t surprise Rajiv Shah, an assistant professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who studied the effectiveness of red-light cameras in Chicago and concluded in 2010 they offered “no significant benefit.”

“I’d say that’s very consistent with what cities across America have found,” he said of Kansas City’s results. “There’s not really a hard connection between reducing accidents and red-light cameras.”

Caution: Red Light Cameras Ahead; The Risks of Privatizing Traffic Law Enforcement and How to Protect the Public

[From Caution: Red Light Cameras Ahead; The Risks of Privatizing Traffic Law Enforcement and How to Protect the Public - Illinois PIRG]

This recently released report by the Illinois PIRG (Public Interest Research Group) focuses on the use of privatized cameras for law enforcement. This is a very different perspective than my work on whether the cameras make use safer. The executive summary of the report:

Privatized traffic law enforcement systems are spreading rapidly across the United States. As many as 700 local jurisdictions have entered into deals with for-profit companies to install camera systems at intersections and along roadways to encourage drivers to obey traffic signals and follow speed limits.

Local contracting for automated traffic enforcement systems may sometimes be a useful tool for keeping drivers and pedestrians safe. But when private firms and municipalities consider revenues first, and safety second, the public interest is threatened.

Before pursuing a camera system contract, local governments should heed the advice of the Federal Highway Administration and first investigate traffic engineering solutions for problem intersections or roadways. If officials decide that private enforcement systems are appropriate, they should avoid deals that constrain future decisions related to protecting safety. Privatized traffic law enforcement should be used solely as a tool for enhancing traffic safety – not as a cash cow for municipalities or private firms.