Lombard officially ends its only red-light camera contract

Lombard village board members agreed Thursday night to cancel their contract with the company that installed a red-light camera at Route 53 and North Avenue.

Trustees approved the resolution 6-0, giving Lombard-based RedSpeed 60 days to remove the village's only camera system. As part of the contract termination agreement, the company still will be responsible for upgrading the traffic lights at the intersection to energy-efficient LED lights, said David Hulseberg, Lombard village manager.

The Illinois Department of Transportation requires LED light upgrades when red-light camera systems are installed, but allows a grace period of a few months for the lighting upgrade to take place, said IDOT spokesman Mike Claffey.

"It's part of the overall attempt to increase safety," Claffey said.

The lights at North Avenue and Route 53, where the camera system was installed May 2009, still have not been upgraded to LED lights, Hulseberg said.

Trustee Keith Giagnorio said the village would have split the cost of the lighting upgrade with RedSpeed if the contract continued.

But he and other village officials said they decided to terminate the contract because the camera system was not effectively serving its intended purpose of improving safety. It also was not producing much revenue, village officials have said.

"It just seemed like the right time," to end the contract, Giagnorio said.