In mid-July, Littleton will turn on red-light cameras at the intersection of South Broadway and Littleton Boulevard to catch drivers going through them.

For 30 days, violators will be mailed only a warning.

In mid-August the fine is $75.

“Improving safety is our priority, and this red-light camera program will help us reduce violations, crashes, and injuries caused by red-light violators,” said Littleton Police Chief Heather Coogan at a Littleton City Council meeting.

“This safety program will save lives, help the traffic flow in a more orderly way, and make Littleton roadways safer by reducing the number of red-light violations.”

Three intersections (Littleton Boulevard and South Broadway, Santa Fe Drive and Mineral Avenue, and Santa Fe Drive and Bowles) have historically averaged 30 to 40 accidents each year, according to Littleton Police.

Cameras are set to be installed at the remaining two intersections later this summer.

Included in the city’s contract with American Traffic Solutions Inc. is an extensive performance tracking system so Littleton can determine whether the program actually is reducing red-light running

They can match the number of actual violations against the violations during the trial run, according to Bill Kroske, vice president of business development for ATS.

Once operational, the system will require at least one officer to review violations for about 30 to 60 hours a week, according to Littleton Police.

Violations recorded by camera will be forwarded to a police officer, who will then evaluate the evidence. If the officer confirms that the captured images indeed show a violation, a summons will be issued to the registered owner of the vehicle.

The owner can choose to pay for the violation by mail — there are no points assessed against a person’s driver’s license for red-light camera violations — or contest the issue in Littleton Municipal Court.

The owner will be provided with the captured images of the violation at the time the summons is issued.

This also will be the case during the trial period.

The cost of the camera system and equipment is expected to cost between $5,000 and $10,000 per year, depending on the number of violations, according to the contract.

There are no set-up costs associated with the cameras and the city doesn’t owe any money to ATS until the cameras are activated.

At a July 7 council meeting, Councilmember Jose Trujillo suggested lowering the amount of the fine.

“If we decrease the fine from $75 to $50 it won’t take long to accomplish slowing people down at the intersections,” he said.

In Littleton, the fine is $88 if a red-light violator is handed a written ticket by an officer.

Trujillo and Mayor Doug Clark voted in favor of lowering the amount. The motion failed.

Clark was the only councilmember to vote against the red-light enforcement.

Littleton joins more than 300 local governments nationwide with traffic cameras, including Denver, Lone Tree, Aurora and Greenwood Village.

But the red-light camera program is not without controversy. Some say the technology leads to an increase in rear-end collisions. Others say it is nothing more than a money generator for cities.

In the past, photo enforcement programs have been seen as a traffic safety support system for areas difficult for the police department to manage effectively, said Bill Kroske, vice president of business development for American Traffic Solutions.

“That is still the case for the most part: monitoring intersections, school zones and road ways that are difficult for an officer to cover, or areas where the camera system is more efficient,” he said.

According to a media report by the Federal Highway Administration, some cities have seen an increase in rear-end accidents because of traffic cameras.