This morning I ran two red lights and one stop sign

And despite the presence of multiple functioning traffic signal cameras in Orleans Parish, I promise you I won't be ticketed for these violations. No, this isn't a riddle. I took the bike to work this morning. I'm lucky enough to be able to accomplish my commute on most days (weather permitting) invisible to the city's nascent traffic surveillance program. And thank God for that.

I mean, yowzers according to that WWL story, nine cameras issued over 1150 citations in one week alone. That's some serious flickering going on there. Tabloid publishers all over the country right now are looking at this and scheming over ways of automating the current "bounty hunter" system which generates America's celebrity candids.

And just like paparazzi, traffic cameras also generate serious moolah for the municipalities which avail themselves of their services. This week's haul for the city is estimated at $115,000 plus another $34,000 in fees. After a while, one imagines a town could purchase some really nice cranes with that kind of money. (Although... you know.... watch where you're driving them.)

On the other hand, evidence is mounting that this revenue bonanza will eventually hit a point of diminishing returns. In some cities, fine collection has dropped dramatically as drivers learn to be more careful at intersections known to be wired up.

Fewer violations = less revenue
Sometimes, as in Dallas, cameras generate so little revenue that they can’t even pay for themselves.

Citywide statistics obtained by NBC affiliate KXAS-TV found that red light cameras do reduce accidents. That is a good thing.

But they do it by reducing red light violations, by as much as 29 percent from month to month at particularly busy Dallas intersections. On the face of it, that, too, is a good thing — but not, necessarily, if you rely on traffic fines to make up a healthy chunk of your budget.

Dallas lawmakers originally estimated gross revenue of $15 million from their 62 cameras this fiscal year, which ends June 30. But City Manager Mary Suhm estimated last week that the city would fall short by more than $4 million.

So last week, the city turned off about a quarter of the least profitable cameras, saying it couldn’t justify the cost of running them.

Dallas, in fact, is one of six cities who became so desperate to goose red light revenue that they actually shortened the length of their yellow signals at key intersections.

Meanwhile fewer ticketable red light offenses have not necessarily meant safer streets. Studies are beginning to show that drivers are either more hesitant to risk a technical violation in order to avoid more dangerous situations or are more likely to cause accidents by stopping suddenly as the light turns yellow. So as New Orleans embarks on yet another public policy already in the process of being discredited nationally, one question remains to be answered. How will the driving skills of Louisiana motorists be affected by the presence of multiple cameras? Luckily, Senator David Vitter has volunteered to participate in the initial round of research.