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DelDOT presents red-light camera plan; Milford council authorizes MOU talks
Summary
DelDOT officials presented automated red-light enforcement data showing high red-light violation counts at three Milford intersections. Council authorized the city manager to pursue a memorandum of understanding with DelDOT to participate in the state camera program; motion passed unanimously 8-0.
DelDOT representatives told Milford City Council that three intersections in the city rank among the state’s higher-risk locations for red-light running and presented a proposed automated enforcement plan. DelDOT’s automated enforcement coordinator Dustin Shane and consultant Matt Buckley described crash-history screening and on-site monitoring that led to camera recommendations.
The nut graf: DelDOT cited crash data to prioritize intersections and asked council to authorize the city manager to negotiate a memorandum of understanding (MOU) so the state could include Milford in its automated red-light program.
DelDOT walked council through the site selection process: an initial statewide screening of more than 1,100 signals, a police-narrative review to identify movements causing red-light crashes, and a vendor-conducted 16-hour observational count at candidate intersections. Buckley said the State’s monitoring found, for one major Route 113/Route 14 crossroads, 129 violations in a single 16-hour monitoring period and recommended cameras on all four approaches there.
“These cameras are used to catch people passing red lights,” Dustin Shane said during Q&A. He and Buckley emphasized the program’s safety goal — reducing angle and red-light crashes — and cited statewide results showing angle crashes and red-light running crashes declined after program installations.
Council members asked about penalties, repeat offenders and whether civil penalties affect driving records. Shane said red-light fines are civil penalties and do not carry DMV points; repeated violations generate repeated civil penalties (the standard penalty cited was $137.50 per violation), late fees and, after extended nonpayment, collection activity and DMV holds.
DelDOT explained the proposed financial structure: DelDOT initially covers vendor and program costs; municipalities participate in the state contract and may receive net revenue if the program produces a surplus. The state would pay monthly lease fees; any surplus would be subject to a periodic reconciliation and, DelDOT recommended, used for traffic-safety purposes (engineering, enforcement, education or emergency services).
After the presentation and council Q&A, a council member moved to authorize the city manager to pursue an MOU with DelDOT; the motion passed 8-0. DelDOT said installation timing is likely late summer or early fall but subject to equipment lead times and scheduling.
