On Wednesday, the New Orleans City Council called on more transparency with the public from the Cantrell administration regarding enforcement thresholds on traffic cameras in school zones.
The statement comes after traffic cameras in school zones were re-calibrated to reduce the threshold for speeding tickets.
The New Orleans City Council issued a press release with the following comments:
Councilmember-At-Large Jason R. Williams says, “Public safety can be achieved by voluntary compliance rather than speed traps. There has to be actual notice and robust education about permitted behavior and policy reasons behind changes the Administration seeks to implement. Changing driving behavior is not about creating trap doors for our citizens that lead to more penalties.”
Councilmember-At-Large Helena Moreno says, “I think the people of New Orleans want and deserve more openness, accountability and transparency from government in all matters. We can achieve more together if people truly trust one another. We must be upfront about the challenges we face and options we have to address them. But we can only build that trust if we are all transparent and share information when we have it.”
District “A” Councilmember Joseph I. Giarrusso III says, “Public safety has to be our number one priority. The administration changed the threshold for speeding tickets without informing the public. Next week’s Budget committee will be the first time the council learns about why and when this decision was made and explores all possible solutions, including amnesty.”
District “C” Councilmember Kristin Gisleson Palmer says, “Residents should be notified when there are any changes to the traffic camera system in our City. The lack of proper notification can be upsetting for people who believed they were operating by the rules and further erodes their trust of local government. It’s only right that the administration explain what happened, why residents weren’t notified, and ensure policies are in place where this doesn’t happen again.”
District “E” Councilmember Cyndi Nguyen says,”I support transparency especially when it comes to public policy. I will continue to inform constituents through community outreach regarding changes that impact District E.”
