FORT MYERS, Fla. — If you run a red light in Fort Myers, you could soon get caught on camera. City leaders are considering a new program to install red light cameras around Fort Myers to help improve safety on city roads.
Watch to see what the City of Fort Myers says about the red light camera program:
A yellow light means slow down, but it’s common to see drivers do the opposite. Mayor Kevin Anderson said he regularly sees drivers blow through red lights.
“Sometimes it’s a matter of, well, he just caught it. Other times it’s very blatant. Very flagrant,” Anderson said.
Anderson, a former Fort Myers police officer, said crashes from red light runners are often T-bones. That’s one reason why he said the city is now taking a closer look at getting red light cameras.
“Anything we can do to make our motoring public safer, I think it’s worth exploring,” Anderson said.
Neighbors in downtown Fort Myers agreed.
“Some of these cars, they’re just out of control. Or the drivers aren’t paying attention because they’re looking at their phones and just going through stuff,” one person said.
“So to have the red light cameras would have a huge impact on the safety of pedestrians,” another added.
The city said it plans to study which intersections need them most. Anderson said they will look at places like Cleveland and Colonial, and First and Fowler. If the cameras do go up, the city will keep track of the impact.
“And if it’s working fine, we’ll continue it. If it’s not really doing that, or doesn’t meet our expectations then we have the option to back out,” Anderson said.
The city put out proposals to find a company that can install both red light and school zone speed cameras at no cost to the city.
