The city of Scottsdale's plans for a 30-day photo-radar pilot program on Loop 101 could come to a screeching halt if state legislators get their way.
If passed, Senate Bill 1164 would prohibit the state or any local authority from putting photo radar on highways in Arizona.
Photo radar would still be allowed on streets and intersections within the city.
Scottsdale officials want to initiate the pilot program to reduce the number of collisions on the highway. It is currently the only city in the Valley proposing this program.
The city is waiting for research from the Arizona Department of Transportation on the availability of technology and photo-radar vendors before installing the cameras.
Critics in the state Legislature proposed the bill because they said Scottsdale is motivated by the potential revenue from speeding tickets and not safety concerns.
Sen. Dean Martin, R-Phoenix, said he sponsors the bill because Scottsdale is trying to go around the state Legislature and collect the ticket revenue itself.
"This is a tremendous cash cow for the local city," he said.
Paul Porell, the director of traffic engineering for Scottsdale, said the money collected from speeders is distributed between the state and the city.
The fine from speeding tickets would remain at $157.
Porell said the city would consider photo radar a success if the percentage of collisions decreased.
From 2003 to 2004, the number of collisions increased by 34 percent.
"Our focus is primarily on safety issues," he said.
Another one of Martin's concerns is that photo radar might cause more accidents than it prevents, he said.
The possibility drivers might slam on their brakes when they see a camera is dangerous, Martin said.
"I want live officers on the freeway. That's the most effective way to make a difference," he said.
Porell said photo radar is a better idea than adding additional police officers on the highway.
"When an officer pulls someone over on the shoulder, it's an impediment to traffic flow," he said.
He added, Scottsdale is taking many precautions to ensure the safety of photo radar. He said residents would receive notification in the mail before the cameras were installed.
The city will place signs and messages along the highway so the general public is also aware.
Porell cites photo-radar successes in Great Britain and Australia to defend its safety.
"All have shown no problems associated with driver's reaction time to photo radar," he said.
While Martin said he thinks this will lead to other cities putting up their own photo-radar systems, Porell said that is not Scottsdale's intention.
"The city is interested only in the city of Scottsdale," he said.
Sean Clark, a first-year masters student in performance and opera, lives in Scottsdale and said he has no problem with photo radar along the Loop 101.
"As long as they notified me, I would be fine with it. People do speed a lot on [the freeway]," he said.
Reach the reporter at michael.famiglietti@asu.edu.
