Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - A number of residents in the City of Buffalo are disgruntled with road construction efforts on the Scajaquada Corridor (Route 198) and the placement of work zone speed cameras, leading to a number of traffic tickets being issued.
This issue has led one resident to file a public integrity complaint against the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT).
"I just felt those cameras were not set up with the public interest at hand, and they seem to be set up in a way to entrap the citizen," said local resident Patrick Freeman in an interview with WBEN. "I didn't see any signage, normally you see speed being tracked by radar camera. You didn't see any of that. And where they put them, specifically, the one on the 198 West; as you know, had that horrific accident a number of years ago, and Gov. Cuomo just changed the speed limit, but they never reconfigured the Expressway. And it's been a problem over there ever since. To put a speed camera there, I thought, was pretty disingenuous on the government's part."
The speed cameras were first set up on the 198 Westbound near the Main Street bridge crews are working on near Sister's Hospital. Now the speed zone cameras have been moved to the 198 Eastbound towards the Kensington Expressway (Route 33).
Freeman feels there wasn't enough warning given to folks driving from the 33 to the 198, especially with such a rapid speed limit change near the road work zone.
"That area, you go from 50 to 30 miles an hour with very little notice, and they've never reconfigured over there. I just felt it was grossly unfair to those of us that live in the neighborhood, or are just coming through the city, honestly, and you go from 50 miles an hour to 30 miles an hour without very little room for error. To put a speed camera there, I thought, was not a very good thing," Freeman explained.
For Freeman, he received a pair of summonses in the mail, with the fine totals escalating over $100. The more puzzling factor for him was the fines were needed to be paid to a company in Philadelphia, Pa.
"They say it's for work zone. I went back and checked the area a couple of times, and there was nobody doing work. But the cameras were still out there giving people tickets. I just felt that was not in the best interest of the taxpayer, and government is supposed to still work for the interests of the people," Freeman said.
"You've got a New York State work zone construction program, and I'm paying tickets to Philadelphia, which I don't understand that at all."
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Freeman says he's not alone, as several other community members have expressed similar concerns and claims with the work zone speed cameras and their placement on the 198.
"Endless complaints, a number of noteworthy people in the neighborhood that have received tickets, just trying to get home. Their biggest complaint is the same as mine. No signage, no warning," he said. "The Department of Transportation, I called them. Whoever answered the phone that day, I don't remember the name, but they were sarcastic. I told them I lived over here for 30 years and [they] said, 'Oh, you've been speeding for 30 years,' like it's a joke. I received two summonses for $100 within a two day period, and I never saw anything.
"I'm not a speeder, I've never gotten tickets. As a matter of fact, I'm a retired police officer, so I obey the law, I'm all for safety. But I'm also for doing things the right way, and the way the state did this, I felt, was disingenuous and not in the proper interests of the taxpayer, and really not in the interests of construction workers. I saw very little, if any warning signs that they were using those mobile cameras at any of the locations they stated."
Freeman says he filed the complaint early Sunday, and will hope to hear back from the State Attorney General's Office within a few days. He's looking forward to getting justice for the citizens of Buffalo who have experienced similar issues.
"I'm hoping they will see things my way, which is in the interest of the citizens, and return our funds," Freeman stated. "I think we were given tickets in a very gotcha-type situation, and they denied that in the statement they put out to the media that they're not a gotcha organization and that it's all about safety. We're all about safety too, but you should do it in the right way, where it's to the benefit of the construction workers that are out there, but also giving the citizens proper and due and timely notice, so that they are more conscious of their speed and slowing down."
Here is the statement from the New York State Department of Transportation Freeman was alluding to:
"Nothing is more important to the Department of Transportation than the safety of our workers, and an important tool in we utilize to protect our workers is the Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement Program. Since work started in the spring, Automated Work Zone cameras have been intermittently set up along the Scajaquada Expressway while crews perform bridge repairs. The posted speed limit along the Scajaquada under normal circumstances is 30 miles-per-hour, and that remains unchanged within our work zone.
"During this time, our cameras have recorded thousands of motorists speeding through our work zones, including incomprehensible speeds of more than 70 miles-per-hour 15 times and 80 miles-per-hour five times. This is completely unacceptable driver behavior that puts our workers at risk on the job.
"The Department of Transportation is not in the gotcha business – we are in the safety business – and we will continue to do everything in our power to keep our workers safe. Motorists need to slow down, pay attention and do their part to maintain a safe roadway system."