The advent of digital technology is slowly bringing change to traffic safety enforcement. Digital cameras and radar guns, combined with software that can recognize license numbers, can remove the need for having officers on the roads to enforce speed limits—as well as limit the instances where said officers get talked out of issuing a summons or fail to show up in court. Red light cameras provide an equally reliable addition to the revenue streams for municipal governments, but they have a far more complex relationship to public safety, which has led a number of states to ban them. Now, some cities in Texas, where a ban of this sort included a grandfather clause, are committing themselves to long-term contracts with the camera provider in order to escape the ban.

Ostensibly, traffic laws are all about public safety, as they prohibit drivers from a variety of behaviors that correlate with increased risk of accidents. And, in the case of speed cameras, the relationship should be pretty straightforward. Assuming that the speed limit on a given road is set based on the road’s layout and prevailing traffic conditions, anything that keeps drivers from driving too far above the speed limit should benefit public safety. The fact that they bring in a steady stream of fines is just an added bonus.

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