Red may be their national racing color, but there’s little Italians hate more than red lights. And with good reason, it turns out: Stefano Arrighetti, creator of the T-Redspeed “smart” traffic system implemented across Italy, is under investigation for fraud on suspicion that he illegally forged transport ministry certification for his system. In place in over 300 municipalities, the system reportedly cuts the yellow-light time by half to ensnare motorists and charge them with running red lights. According to reports, some camera locations jumped from issuing 15 fines per day to more than 1,000. The net-net? The scheme may have fleeced motorists for more than US$1.68 million.
Arrighetti isn’t the only one under investigation. Along with him are 63 chiefs of police and 39 local government officials. Local police are charged with rubber-stamping the automated tickets and sending them out without proper review. If the T-Redspeed system is indeed fraudulently issuing moving violations, it would be the local authorities reaping the benefit from the extra charges incurred. This also raises the question, could this be happening anywhere else in the world? We are all very familiar with green lights that suddenly turn red and two second yellow-lights. Always thought the lights were malfunctioning? Think again, someone could just be looking for a high-tech way of getting into your wallet.
Sources: BBC News; Motor Authority; AutoBlog
