Lake in the Hills ups number of traffic cams

Motorists driving through Lake in the Hills this week will soon have a lot more to fear than goblins and other things that go bump in the night.

Officials have activated two more red light cameras, one at Randall and Miller roads and the other at Algonquin Road and Hilltop Drive.

For the first 30 days, police will issue warning tickets to violators.

The real $100 tickets, which don't count against your driving record, won't be mailed to red-light runners until the day after Thanksgiving.

These cameras supplement the one already in place at Acorn Lane and Randall Road, which has turned into a cash cow for Lake in the Hills, raking in more than $235,000 in tickets between January and August. Those numbers will only go up, with cameras slated for Algonquin and Lakewood roads.

Police chose these intersections due to the high number of accidents and red light violations reported there.

In 2006, there were 49 traffic-related accidents at Randall and Miller roads, the village's most dangerous intersection, said Jim Wales, director of police and public safety.

That same year, 27 accidents were reported at Algonquin and Hilltop roads, Wales said.

You can count on finding a ticket in your mailbox if you pull into an intersection after the light has turned red - the entire vehicle needs to be over the line in order for you to get ticketed.

Preliminary numbers show that there's been a slight reduction in traffic accidents at Acorn Lane and Randall Road, since the camera was installed.

In 2008, there were only 19 accidents there between Jan. 22 and Oct. 20. During the same time period in 2006, there were 22 crashes, Wales said.

As well, the number of tickets mailed out is dwindling.

When the cameras went on Jan. 22, there were more than 200. In August, the most recent month available, there were just 109.

"We expect a fairly high number of citations in the beginning, then they drop down and plateau off," Wales said.