Nearly 20,000 vehicles went through red lights in Hamilton in 2022, according to city camera data

More than 19,000 vehicles were caught on camera going through red lights in Hamilton in 2022, according to the city. 

The number — 19,131 — is up from 2021 but roughly the same as 2020, Norm Miller, a spokesperson with the public works department, told CBC Hamilton. 

Miller said the city made roughly $3.3 million from drivers running red lights and said some 22 per cent of all charges filed through the provincial offences administration office are for red light camera violations.

It's unclear how much the city profited though as the operating costs for 2022 aren't finalized. For context, Emily Trotta, another spokesperson with the public works department, said it cost the city $1,245,000 to operate red light cameras in 2021.

The number of individual drivers fined is also unclear.

The top intersection for red light camera violations was Cannon Street West and Hess Street North with 2,508 vehicles caught breaking the law.

The other top intersections were also in the city's core.

Main Street West and Queen Street South saw 2,074 vehicles drive through red lights, King Street West and Macklin Street saw 1,889 violations, Main Street and Dundurn Street South saw 1,877 violations and Hess Street North and York Boulevard saw 1,609 violations.

The last intersection is almost right next to Cannon and Hess.

Brian Hart, a long-time regional trainer with Young Drivers of Canada in Hamilton, told CBC Hamilton the number of infractions and the city's hot spots don't surprise him.

"A lot of people try to get through [the lights] quickly. There's an attitude that's 'Can I make it?' not 'Should I stop for it?'" he said.

Hart said based on the statistics on red light camera violations over the years, he isn't sure it's helping since the number only dropped during the pandemic.

Miller said a review of collision data at intersections with red light cameras between 2019 and 2021 showed, on average, right-angle collisions fell by 58 per cent and injuries and deaths associated with those crashes fell by 65 per cent compared to a three-year period without the cameras.

But the number of rear-end crashes increased by 92 per cent, Miller said. He didn't provide data on if injuries and deaths associated with those crashes grew too.