The City of Redmond will turn on its red light cameras May 15. Phase one of the automated photo enforcement traffic program includes six stationary cameras and one mobile unit that can be placed in different areas.
The first fixed camera locations will be facing north, south, east and westbound at NW Sixth Street and Maple Avenue as well as north and southbound at the 2900 block of NW Tenth Street. The first location for the mobile unit will be the 2000 block of SW Quartz Avenue.
The selected intersections are considered high-risk traffic areas. Redmond Police say between 2023 and 2025 at least 15 traffic crashes occurred at NW 6th and Maple. Lt. Curtis Chambers with Redmond Police told the Source that’s the highest number at a Redmond intersection that is not managed by the Oregon Department of Transportation.
The intersection on NW Tenth Street was chosen in part because it’s near a posted elementary school zone which is regularly a 25-mph zone that drops to 20 during certain hours. A large subdivision in the area was also recently completed, with another one currently under construction and a third housing development starting soon.
The first location for the mobile unit, which exclusively targets speeders, will be near Quartz Park which Chambers says is one of the city’s most frequently visited parks. It’s also where the Dry Canyon Trail crosses the road. Chambers says SW Quartz, a 25 mile-per-hour residential street, has been used as a cut-through with speeding a persistent issue since it opened in 2000. Chambers says the initial plan is to move the mobile unit every four months. There would be public notices and a 30-day warning period before citations are issued at each new location.
Chambers says warning signs alerting drivers to the traffic cameras will be in place before they go live on May 15. He says the goal is to change dangerous driving behavior.
“I will stress that this is not a gotcha game. This is not a money grab. The Redmond Police Department and the City of Redmond as a whole would be over the moon happy if no violations were captured by the photo enforcement system because no violations were occurring,” he says.
The City of Redmond has a five-year contract for the cameras with Verra Mobility, a smart transportation company based in Arizona. As the Source reported in November, the contract is for $4.3 million.
“All images associated with potential violations are captured and processed within Verra Mobility’s secure system, but the City of Redmond retains full ownership and control over all data,” Chambers says. “Verra Mobility cannot share, sell or release Redmond’s data to any outside agency.” He says images from incidents where no citation is issued will be retained up to 30 days. Images associated with citations issued for traffic violations will be retained up to 36 months, which Chambers says is consistent with Oregon state records retention laws. He says Verra Mobility has contracts with at least eight other jurisdictions in Oregon for its photo enforcement systems and has established a good reputation for data security, privacy compliance and expertise in the state’s legal requirements.
“Redmond is not sharing any photo enforcement data with any other outside agency and has no mechanism or process that provides access to federal immigration authorities,” Chambers says. “Any disclosure of data would need to comply with Oregon law, which strictly limits the use and release of traffic enforcement records.”
Verra Mobility’s Public Relations Manager Jamie Phillis told the Source, “Verra Mobility takes privacy and data protection seriously and is dedicated to handling personal data with the utmost care and responsibility in full compliance with applicable laws. Enforcement programs are operated, and all personal data is owned by the customer. Verra Mobility does not share this data with or sell it to any third party. “
Drivers who speed or go through a red light at any of those intersections will receive a warning during the first month. Tickets will begin June 15. The fine for a red-light violation is $265. Speeding 11 to 20 miles per hour over the limit is $165. The fine jumps to $265 for speeds up to 30 miles per hour over and $440 for drivers going more than 31 miles per hour over the limit. Fines are doubled in school zones.
If the registered owner of a vehicle was not driving at the time of an infraction, that person can submit a Certificate of Innocence or Certificate of Non-Liability and submit the name, address and driver’s license information of the person who was driving. Police may reissue a citation to the driver if they can determine it to be factual.
Phase two of the program will add seven more cameras. Locations have not yet been selected but Chambers says the City is working with ODOT to possibly install them on roads managed by ODOT such as Highway 97 and Odem Medo Road and the intersection of SW Highland Avenue and Rimrock Way. Chambers says the hope is to have those up and running by the end of the year.
Kacey Davey with ODOT explains there’s a process cities must follow to install cameras on highways. “That includes submitting a formal request with safety and operations data, followed by technical review and approval by ODOT’s State Traffic Engineer. If approved, ODOT and the local jurisdiction enter into an agreement that outlines roles and responsibilities. That agreement step can take some time depending on the project.” Davey says Redmond’s requests are still moving through the review stage.
The City of Bend turned on automatic traffic cameras at three intersections in April with an initial warning period. Citations begin on May 15, the same day Redmond’s cameras go live.
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