Nassau revenue from red-light camera tickets in 2022 spikes to $64 million, records show

Nassau brought in $64 million in revenue from its red-light camera program in 2022, a 23% increase from just two years earlier, and the third-highest total in the program's 15-year history, according to annual county reports obtained by Newsday.

The 308 cameras, operating at 100 red-light camera intersections across Nassau, generated 492,540 tickets — another near-record amount — in 2022, the most recent year where data is available, the report shows.

Red-light tickets in Nassau now cost motorists $150: a $50 fine, a $45 "driver responsibility fee" and a $55 "public safety fee." No points are assessed to the driver's license.

The 2022 report indicates that the devices, which critics describe as a money grab and proponents insist promote safety at high-volume traffic locations, have led to steep reductions in crashes at red-light camera intersections.

For example, in 2022, right-angle crashes, or T-bone collisions, plummeted 76% at red-light camera intersections in Nassau, compared to a three-year average before the cameras were installed in 2009, officials wrote. Rear-end crashes at the 100 intersections fell 4% during that same comparative time period, while accidents involving injuries dropped by 33%, the report said.

There was one fatality at a Nassau red-light camera intersection in 2022, five in 2021 and two in 2020, data shows.

Concerns over 'backdoor tax'

Newsday obtained red-light camera reports for 2020, 2021 and 2022 from Nassau's Traffic and Parking Violations Agency via a Freedom of Information Law request. Production of the 2023 report is not yet complete, TPVA general counsel Marc Mullen said.

Nassau's red-light camera program generated $64 million in revenue in 2022, according to county data. That total includes $25.3 million from the public safety fee and $18.7 million from the driver responsibility fee, according to figures provided by the Nassau Interim Finance Authority, the county's fiscal watchdog. The bulk of the remainder comes from the $50 fine itself, in addition to fees for such things as a late payment.

Reports show the red-light camera program generated $59 million in revenue in 2021 and $52 million in 2020, which was in the midst of the pandemic.

The program brought in a record $80.2 million in revenue in 2018 and $69.9 million in 2019, county data shows.

"Since their deployment nearly 15 years ago, these cameras have been successful in reducing serious accidents and injuries wherever they have been deployed," said Nassau Legislature Presiding Officer Howard Kopel (R-Lawrence). "The goal, as always, is to encourage safer driving."

Legis. Seth Koslow (D-Merrick) said that while the red-light camera program has a "legitimate goal and purpose," Democrats remain worried about excessive fees passed on to motorists.

"The concern, as always, is are we tacking on extra fees as a backdoor tax, as opposed to the legitimate minimum amount we have to charge to deter people," Koslow said. "If we are, we're just throwing in more charges for the sake of gaining more funds, then that's an issue."

Nassau paid its red-light camera vendor $7.9 million to operate the system in 2022; $7.2 million in 2021 and $6.4 million in 2020, records show.

Red-light cameras at the intersection of Community Drive and North Service Road in Lake Success generated the most violations in 2022 at 25,389. The intersection of Lakeview Avenue and Peninsula Boulevard in Rockville Centre ranked a close second with 25,047 tickets.

Just under 500 motorists challenged their red-light camera violation at court hearings in 2022 but less than 11% — or 54 tickets — were thrown out, the report states.

Jay Beeber, executive director of policy for the Wisconsin-based National Motorists Association, which opposes red-light cameras nationwide, said if Nassau's system was truly successful at improving driver safety and behavior, revenue should be declining.

"But it's not because they don't want to actually reduce the number of violations," Beeber said of the county. "They want the revenue. They like to keep churning out the tickets."

Suffolk winding down program

While Nassau's red-light cameras continue to generate record amounts of revenue, Suffolk County has said it plans to wind down its program at year’s end after state lawmakers, who are up for reelection in November, did not extend the program before the legislative session ended in June.

In 2022, Suffolk's 216 red-light cameras, located at 100 intersections, provided more than $17.5 million in revenue to the county, records show.

The fine for ticket violations in Suffolk is $50. The county eliminated a $30 administrative fee after a State Supreme Court justice ruled it an unconstitutional tax.

State Sen. Jack Martins (R-Old Westbury) sponsored legislation earlier this year reauthorizing Nassau's program, which was set to expire Dec. 1, for five more years. Martins did not respond to requests for comment.

The red-light camera program has been a contentious issue under both Democratic and Republican Nassau county administrations.

In 2021, majority Republicans on the county legislature proposed eliminating the $55 public safety fee — which is used to fund the county police department — when Democrat Laura Curran served as county executive. Democratic lawmakers abstained from the vote and Curran vetoed the legislation, calling the public safety fee a key source of revenue for the county police department.

During the Nassau County executive's race later in 2021, Republican Bruce Blakeman, who defeated Curran, opposed the public safety fee as "outrageously expensive" and vowed to eliminate it.

But in the three years since taking office, Blakeman, whose office did not respond to requests for comment, has not proposed legislation eliminating the fee.

Last year, a Briarcliff Manor resident, who received a red-light camera ticket, filed a lawsuit against the county challenging the two red-light camera fees as "unauthorized taxes."

Attorneys for the county contend the fees were duly enacted by the state legislature and that the case should be dismissed.

The red-light cameras, which photograph the rear of the vehicle, are installed 50 to 150 feet before the stop line. When a violation occurs, both a digital image and a video of the violation are captured and sent to the motorist.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.