CAMERAS CATCHING RED-LIGHT VIOLATORS.

Byline: KERRY CAVANAUGH Staff Writer

Photo enforcement cameras designed to cut down on vehicle collisions with Orange Line buses have caught nearly 2,000 motorists running red lights at busway intersections, resulting in 221 citations, transportation officials said Wednesday.

The stepped-up enforcement with clearer signs at intersections has helped cut the number of busway collisions to nine minor incidents since January, Metropolitan Transportation Authority officials said.

``We've hit it really hard. It's really the three Es -- education, enforcement and engineering,'' said Gary Spivack, San Fernando Valley division transportation manager.

The cameras were ordered late last year after eight collisions occurred in just two months along the then-new east-west San Fernando Valley busway. The 14-mile line opened Oct.29 and runs between North Hollywood and Warner Center.

All of the accidents happened because motorists ran red lights or failed to heed new traffic regulations at the intersections, officials said.

In response, the MTA committed to a five-year, $6 million contract to install and operate red-light cameras along the Orange and Blue lines. The MTA began setting up the Orange Line cameras this summer.

Motorists were given a grace period after the cameras were installed, and red-light runners received warnings in the mail.

kerry.cavanaugh(at)dailynews.com

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