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Police present crash trends, urge ODOT to explain camera criteria
Summary
Captain Cameron Ferguson told the commission that most reported injury crashes since Jan. 1 were minor and outlined how new radar trailers and pole-mounted monitors will help target enforcement; he and members asked ODOT to clarify why the city does not meet criteria for red-light or speed cameras at key intersections.
Captain Cameron Ferguson of the Newberg-Dundee Police Department presented crash and DUI data through Jan. 1, 2026, saying about 75% of reported injury incidents were minor head or neck complaints treated on scene and not transported to hospitals. He said the department upgraded its data system and is working with the city IT team to produce maps highlighting recurring crash locations.
Ferguson described deploying radar trailers and newly purchased small pole-mounted monitoring units that record speeds and traffic counts. "The two units we've purchased now are pole-mounted and most people don't even know they're there," he said, adding the devices will provide cleaner, map-based data to guide targeted enforcement rather than reading long lists of incident reports.
Why it matters: commissioners flagged recurring problems at Springbrook and Portland Road and at Providence and Brewster, and asked whether automated enforcement (red-light or speed cameras) could be installed to curb dangerous behavior. Ferguson said the department has requested camera consideration but ODOT staff have told them the city does not meet ODOT's placement criteria because of the region/stage classification. "They keep telling us we just don't meet the criteria for us to put a camera on ODOT at that intersection," Ferguson said.
Commissioners noted the Oregon Transportation Safety Action Plan is prioritizing roadway departures, intersections and speeding in coming years and asked staff to invite ODOT to explain its criteria so the commission can understand eligibility and potential remedies. Ferguson agreed to bring intersection-specific camera and speed data at the next meeting on request.
The commission did not take formal votes on enforcement policy at the meeting; next steps include requesting ODOT representation to the commission and reviewing the PD's mapped crash data at a future session.
