KRT CALIFORNIA STORY SLUGGED: CA-REDLIGHT KRT PHOTOGRAPH BY BOB LARSON/CONTRA COSTA TIMES (November 22) The white car in the photo is at the start of the intersection as the light goes red on Ygnacio Valley Blvd. and Civic Dr. in Walnut Creek. Red-light running is an increasingly dangerous roadway trend. Each year, more than 800 people die and more than 200,000 are injured in crashed nationwide that involve passing through red lights, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. (CC) PL KD 2000 (Vert) (lde)

Letter of the Day: Easy money

Easy money

EDITOR: After driving around Santa Rosa, I think I have found an untapped wealth of income for the city: the traffic lights and crosswalk on Mendocino Avenue. If the city placed a police officer at traffic-lighted intersections, it could make thousands of dollars every month. Every day I see blatant violations by so-called law-abiding citizens who don't want to wait for the next light. Even after 15-20 seconds they are still rolling through red lights.

According to the California Vehicle Code, "Every person convicted of a red light infraction shall be punished by a fine of $100." For crosswalk violations, the fines are even steeper - a first offense is $100, the second is $200 and the third is $250.

It only takes a few minutes to see that these places are a potential gold mine of revenue. And until drivers begin to follow the laws these areas will continue to be.

MICHAEL WILLIAMS

Santa Rosa

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