Western Springs Red Light Cameras 'Impressive': Official

WESTERN SPRINGS, IL — Western Springs has seen a big drop in the annual number of crashes at the two intersections with red light cameras, according to village statistics.

A dozen years ago, the village put up red light cameras on 55th Street's westbound approach to Wolf Road and Ogden Avenue's westbound and eastbound approaches to Wolf Road.

Over the years, the annual number of crashes has dropped 50 percent at 55th and Wolf and 37 percent at Ogden and Wolf. The village contracts with London-based RedSpeed for the cameras.

"The statistics are pretty impressive," Trustee Scott Lewis said at Monday's Village Board meeting.

The red light cameras are a moneymaker for the village. Last year, the program brought in $230,000 in fines. That was the highest amount in the program's history, according to village statistics.

The next highest year was 2019, at $222,000. The lowest year was 2010, when the program raised $74,000. The annual payment rate has averaged 83 percent, according to the village.

Village figures show that 18 percent of ticket recipients are from Western Springs, followed by 8 percent from Chicago, 7 percent from La Grange and 4 percent from Hinsdale. The remaining towns account for 63 percent.