[Carfreeliving] Put cameras on street sweepers/buses &redepl oy
PCOs to enforce safety/efficiency violations?
David Baker
db at dbarchitect.com
Thu Apr 14 13:21:58 MDT 2005
I'm in.
Db
David Baker FAIA
david baker + partners, architects
461 Second Street, Loft 127, San Francisco, CA 94107
v.415.896.6700x101
f.415.896.6103
www.dbarchitect.com
db at dbarchitect.com
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Brinkman, Cheryl [mailto:Cheryl.Brinkman at McKesson.com]
> Sent: Thursday, April 14, 2005 9:31 AM
> To: nelson.jeremy at comcast.net; Carfreeliving at livablecity.org
> Cc: Peter Mezey; Cmdr. Sylvia Harper; Bond Yee; Joe Speaks
> Subject: RE: [Carfreeliving] Put cameras on street
> sweepers/buses &redepl oy PCOs to enforce safety/efficiency
> violations?
>
> I will donate $100 earmarked to Sweeper Camera research to
> TLC - are there
> 9 more people on this list who can join me? I complain
> enough about lack of PCOs to ticket sidewalk parkers, maybe
> this will help free up PCO time.
>
> Cheryl
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jeremy Nelson [mailto:nelson.jeremy at comcast.net]
> Sent: Thursday, April 14, 2005 8:43 AM
> To: Carfreeliving at livablecity.org
> Cc: Peter Mezey; Cmdr. Sylvia Harper; Bond Yee; Joe Speaks
> Subject: [Carfreeliving] Put cameras on street sweepers/buses
> & redeploy PCOs to enforce safety/efficiency violations?
>
> - Dave Snyder wrote: "One solution is to use cameras mounted
> on the street sweeping machines to ticket all the cars that
> don't move for the street sweepers, freeing up jars and jars
> of peanut butter for other parts of the bread. Similarly,
> buses could be equipped with cameras for ticketing the owners
> of cars parked in bus stops. This latter idea has a positive
> effect that would be very popular socially: the bus stops
> would become extremely short-term parking zones, available
> for free parking until a bus comes, when the driver would
> have to get out of the way or else face a guaranteed $275 ticket."
>
>
> - Mike Sallaberry wrote: "I like it...intriguing approach.
> Does any place use cameras like this?"
>
>
> - Jeremy Nelson writes: Yes! Several California cities
> already use cameras on street sweepers to automatically issue
> tickets to parking violators, including Redwood City,
> Palmdale, and Richmond (see 8/17/04 CCT article below).
>
> I pitched this idea to Commander Sylvia Harper (Director of
> PCO Enforcement) last summer (see e-mail below). She brought
> it up internally at DPT Deputy Directors' meeting with Bond
> Yee. She follow-up with me to say the idea was met with
> general interest but then asked TLC to do more research on
> cost-effectiveness and how well the cameras are working in
> other cities. I assigned this task to an intern who promptly
> got a paying job and could not do the research.
>
> Trying to revive the idea, I also recently talked with MTA
> Director Peter Mezey about this in relation to the MTA
> structural budget deficit as a way to "do more with less."
> He also seemed very interested, and mentioned that this would
> be a good model for the MTA to transition to in order to be
> able to redeploy PCOs who are currently being used during
> morning rush hours solely for street-sweeping to enforce
> violations that impact the safety and efficiency of the
> transportation system (parking on the sidewalk, bike lanes,
> and bus lanes; we call these 'Quality of Service' violations
> and believe that DPT should prioritize these types of violations).
>
> TLC would be happy to meet with any interested MTA staff and
> transportation advocates to discuss this idea, discuss who
> should take the lead, and put together a proposed workplan
> for how DPT might shift to this model. Perhaps there are
> Prop K funds for this kind project under the rubric of
> 'better system management' or similar category?
>
> Ideally, MTA/DPT would pursue this on their own as a
> "cost-savings" and/or "best practice management technique"
> that are politically popular right now.
> If that's not possible, TLC could work with other groups to
> advocate for the MTA/DPT to transition to this model;
> unfortunately we can't take the lead on this project right
> now, unless someone out there can identify some financial
> resources for us to hire a part-time intern specifically for
> this research project and subsequent advocacy campaign
> (likely cost: 100 hours at $10/hr = $1000).
>
> Hope to continue the conversation with anyone interested- Jeremy
>
>
> =========================
>
>
> Hi Cmdr. Harper- How are you? I wanted to thank you and your
> staff again for taking the time to meet with TLC and our
> partner groups San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, Walk SF,
> Rescue Muni, and Senior Action Network a few months ago to
> discuss how we can work with DPT to pursue more robust
> parking enforcement so that San Francisco's transportation
> system is safer and works better for all modes of travel,
> especially pedestrians, bicyclists, and transit passengers.
>
> Along those lines, I thought you might be interested in the
> article below about how Redwood City and Palmdale are using
> cameras attached to street-sweeper machines which allow them
> to redeploy the PCOs that had previously been exclusively
> dedicated for street-sweeping enforcement.
>
> DPT could also pursue this cost-effective strategy to free up
> more PCOs to enforce sidewalk parking, double-parking in bike
> lanes, and parking in bus zones, etc. Could you let me know
> if this is something DPT would consider and how TLC could
> help advocate for the use of this technology to do better
> parking enforcement without more resources? Best-Jeremy
>
>
> =========================
>
>
> "Richmond to use sweeper-camera to enforce parking"
>
> Published Tuesday, August 17, 2004, in the Contra Costa Times
> By Karl Fischer, Contra Costa Times
>
> RICHMOND -- Last year, residents complained that city street
> sweepers often failed to follow their routes. City officials
> attached global-positioning satellite trackers to them and
> the problem improved.
>
> This year, Richmond faces crushing budget cuts and drastic
> understaffing at the Police Department, which can't easily
> spare an officer to ticket illegally parked cars that clutter
> the path of the GPS-enabled sweepers.
>
> The solution: Sweeper-cameras will help enforce parking rules.
>
> "We're taking it to the next level. We're going to put a
> video recorder on one and see whether we can use it for
> parking enforcement," acting Police Chief Charles Bennett
> said. "It just doesn't make sense to have an officer or
> police assistant follow around the sweepers, writing tickets
> as they go."
>
> If trials this fall prove successful, Richmond will become
> only the second California city to mount video cameras on
> street sweepers.
>
> In coming months, when a Richmond sweeper encounters a parked
> car blocking its route, the operator will flick on the camera
> to record the license plate and the infraction in progress,
> as well as the time and location. Later, police will review
> recordings and mail $36 tickets to car owners.
>
> Bennett says his plan, though unconventional, will generate
> consistent revenue for the cash-strapped city.
>
> City officials don't know how much revenue or how many
> tickets sweeper-cams would generate, but expect to learn more
> after the one-sweeper test.
>
> If that camera performs as Bennett expects, the Police
> Department will spend about $20,000 to outfit all five city
> sweepers with higher-quality cameras.
>
> Operators will not record continuously and will only document
> parking infractions, Bennett added. The sweepers will only
> record on blocks with signs warning motorists of their schedule.
>
> Few issues have enflamed Richmond residents in recent years
> more than street sweepers. Upset residents have packed City
> Council meetings and City Hall phone lines over poor service,
> lack of service, parking tickets for violating sweeper zones,
> a lack of parking tickets for scofflaws and, above all, the
> hated sweeper-schedule signs.
>
> Some neighborhoods so despised plans to post signs warning
> car owners of the sweeping schedule that the city held a
> mail-in vote last summer about whether all neighborhoods must
> have them. As a result, Carriage Hills, Richmond Annex and
> Richmore Village opted out.
>
> Public Works Director Rich McCoy sees potential in sweeper-cams.
>
> Just as last year's satellite tracking system add-on helped
> resolve many complaints about absent sweepers, cameras could
> combat another common
> complaint: Poor steering.
>
> "Right now, the proposal is to hang the camera right over the
> edge on the right of the sweeper," McCoy said. "If you say
> your car was dinged by a passing sweeper ... this is recorded
> evidence" of whether it did.
>
> Richmond's interest in sweeper-cams follows a path first
> blazed by the Los Angeles County city of Palmdale.
>
> That city installed dashboard cameras in its four sweepers a
> year ago. In addition to sweeping, they also help city
> workers inspect curbs, gutters, sidewalks, trees and other
> publicly maintained roadside features.
>
> "We really haven't had any major problems with them,"
> Palmdale street maintenance supervisor Bruce Roadhouse said.
> "The sweeper will sometimes vibrate the camera, and sometimes
> dust obscures the view. But that's about it."
>
> Reach Karl Fischer at 510-262-2728 or kfischer at cctimes.com
>
>
>
>
>
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