7/16    Is there a place to report people who illegally laminate license
        plates of their vehicles trying to avoid being caught by red light
        cameras?
        \_ Is there a place we can complain about the poor timing of
           traffic lights that would cause people to run red lights?
           \_ Some engineer who was ticketed by the traffic light camera at
              Alvarado Niles Rd cross H St in Union City actually won the case
              in court and got someone to change the timing of the light.  I
              don't know who was responsible for the timing though.
           \_ Ditto.  Northbound Shattuck turning onto University light seems
              to have gotten much shorter since they installed the camera.
              I see the flash going off almost every time I'm driving through
              it (on someone else, not me.)  I wonder what percentage of those
              flashes actual end up being ticketed?
        \_ Not a central place, no. You could contact your local DPT.
        \_ You could just shoot them.  Why do you care?
           \_ I just think that a speedning Mustang with a laminated plate
           \_ I just think that a speeding Mustang with a laminated plate
              probably tends to run red lights.  I just want him/her to get
              caught when he/she actually does.
              \_ Mythbusters tested various techniques.  The camera gets you
                 anyway.
                 \_ Good to know.  Thanks.
              \_ That is between the cops, the driver and the dmv.  The last I
                 checked the legal system in this country still had a
                 presumption of innocent until proven guilty not "you're in a
                 mustang and i don't like your plate so the State needs my
                 help to bust you".  And no I don't own a mustang, have
                 laminated plates or run red lights.  Do you drive exactly 65
                 in the fast lane to keep people from speeding, too?
                 \_ I'm trying to report a violation of laminated plate which
                    I am a witness, not trying to report a possible violation
                    of running red light which I'm not (yet) a witness.
                    \_ You think the cops don't have better things to do?
                 \_ In my mind there's a huge difference between running
                    a red light and speeding a bit on the freeway.  The
                    former is very likely to result in harm.  I think every
                    instance of red light running is serious and should
                    be punished.  I mostly don't care about speeding.
                    \_ In this case the driver hadn't done either.  They have
                       a laminated plate.  They haven't sped or run a red
                       light that anyone knows of.
                    \_ I would agree with you if everything was as simple as
                       you make it out to be. In reality, it's not that
                       simple. In the vast majority of cases, most red-light
                       violations are more accidental than anything else.
                       When you subtract the reaction time of a perfect
                       driver without any kind of hesitation, it requires
                       the driver to execute a violent emergency stop
                       (straight line braking with ABS kicking in) in
                       order to stop before the light turns from yellow
                       to red. At that point, the driver runs the risk of
                       being rear-ended. This is the problem with many
                       intersections. They don't design the length of yellow
                       lights or the time between a red light to green light
                       transition to account for these kinds of things.
                       \_ In your scenario, the party which should be
                          punished is the city for having unsafe yellow-
                          light timing!  It is still very serious and
                          should be punished!  Just not necessarily the
                          driver, if he's not at fault.  I say again,
                          *every* instance of red-light running is serious
                          and should be punished.
                       \_ I see assholes in SF running the red light,
                          nearly barreling into pedestrians, all of the time,
                          it's certainly not a case of breaking distance,
                          it's driver assholism.  Maybe a few stiff red
                          light tickets will cure them of Chronic
                          Asshole.
                       \_ they absolutely do design the length of yellow
                          lights and the time between a red light and green
                          light based on human reaction times.  What makes
                          you think they don't?
                          \_ Oh they do.  To insure that you run the red.
                          \_ The light on the left turn around the corner from
                             me goes yellow when the first car gets 3/4s
                             through the intersection and the timing is really
                             short so the last car or two *always* run the
                             red even though they entered on green.
                             \_ Those cameras snap only if you enter on red.
                                I know because I enter on yellow all the time
                                at an intersection with a working camera,
                                and I haven't gotten any tickets.