According to a report by KCPQ the City of Burien is losing money on the three red light cameras. They are installed at 148th S.W.and 1st Ave. South, 152nd S.W. and 1st Ave. South, and at 160th S.W. and 1st Ave. South.
The addition of three red light cameras in Burien has many residents grumbling that it is just a way for the city to bring in a lot more revenue.
As it turns out, Burien has lost money on the cameras, according to KCPQ TV.
The city pays Redflex, which owns and operates the cameras, a monthly fee and then receives revenue from each $101 ticket.
City Manager Mike Martin told the TV station that the cameras were added mainly to increase safety but the city hoped to break even. He added that assigning a police officer to patrol the three intersections would cost much more than the $500 a month for each intersection that Burien is losing with the cameras.
According to KCPQ, in the past year, 4,359 tickets brought revenue of $231,028. But Burien paid Redflex $204,000 and had administrative fees of $43,590.
By contrast, Seattle paid out $1 million and received $2.1 million in return for the first two years of operation.
Martin said only about a third of those ticketed pay the $101 fine by mail. Most people go to court where the tickets may be thrown out or reduced.
He also said that the cameras are deterring drivers from running red lights so when compliance is up, tickets are down.
