The city has generated nearly $1 million in revenue since the first red light camera was installed at First Street and Taft Avenue in 2025.
Red light cameras were installed in February of 2025 at First Street and Taft Avenue; and later in April of 2025 at East Eisenhower Boulevard and Boise Avenue and West 57th Street and U.S. 287 to in Loveland.
The red light cameras have brought in $917,625 in revenue as of May 10, according to data obtained by the Loveland Reporter-Herald through a public records request to the Loveland Police Department. Violations carry a and are a civil infraction, which means it will not add points to the person’s driver’s license or be reported to their insurance provider.
Loveland Police Department Public Information Officer Chris Padgett called the program revenue-neutral, and said that at this point, the money generated is still going toward paying for the cameras. He said the police department is planning to install cameras at more intersections in the future with the funding to continue improving traffic safety in the city.
“We are mandated to take that money and put it back into traffic safety,” Padgett said. “We can’t take this money and redecorate this room because it needs to be painted and get new carpet.”
Padgett also said that despite seeing online complaints from people thinking they’ve wrongfully received citations, he believes the red light cameras have been an effective tool at improving traffic safety because more people are discussing red lights.
“These camera systems, as much as people don’t like them, they are a force multiplier and very, very impactful to public safety in a positive way,” Padgett said.
If vehicles cross the thick and solid white line called a stop bar it is considered a violation, said Loveland Police Department Traffic Sgt. Jeff Mayers.
“It is not any different, just because it’s a red light and it’s a right turn and you can turn right on red,” Mayers said. “Still means you have to stop.”
Loveland City Council the cameras in September 2023 to increase traffic safety in Loveland. The police department also uses a to catch people speeding in different areas throughout the city. The red light cameras use speed to detect if a vehicle will stop at the red light to take a picture and video, but only the radar vans capture speed, Mayers said.
The Loveland Police Department works with — a company that uses automated camera systems and AI — to capture images and videos of the violation as it occurs, as well as images of the driver and license plate, Mayers explained. Then each violation is reviewed by a member of the police department.
Most of the violations have occurred at Eisenhower and Boise, according to data obtained in the public records request. In a little over one year, 11,909 violations and warnings have been issued for not properly stopping at that intersection.
At First and Taft and at 57th and U.S. 287, 6,804 and 4,036 violations and warnings have been issued, respectively. Out of the 22,749 violations and warnings, 6,974 violations had not been paid as of May 10, according to data obtained in the public records request. Only once was the registered owner of the vehicle able to successfully dispute the $75 fine, according to the public record request.
“Itap not money,” Mayers said. “… Itap about a change in behavior and all it really is about is safety for the public.”
‘A person reviews it’
The process doesn’t end with a third-party company and AI software issuing a violation. A member of the departmentap traffic division reviews each potential infraction and takes a closer look, Mayers said.
“When I say it gets sent to us for review, it means that a person reviews it … a local person,” Mayers said.
Mayers said a majority of the violations he reviews are clear, but that the benefit of having someone review each instance before a violation is issued is not only a safeguard, but brings humanity.
“People make mistakes, and they notice it, and they’re like, ‘Oh, I need to stop,’ and they’re in the crosswalk,’” Mayers said. “Is it a violation? Yes. … Did they do what they needed to do to make sure that it was clear before they went again? We’ll look at all that. And that’s when a person comes in.”
He added that the traffic division is made up of sworn and non-sworn employees, which offers multiple viewpoints, and that on the rare occasion a violation is not immediately clear, members will turn to each other for help.
“Those are the fail-safes that we’ve put in place to make sure that people aren’t getting wrongfully cited,” Mayers said.
Although some residents may think negatively about the variability that humans bring into each review, the alternative is everyone being automatically cited regardless of the situation, Padgett said.
“Even if it’s just some people catching a break, at the end of the day, you can’t tell,” Padgett said. “You don’t know if this is a gentleman with glasses on. We don’t know if that’s a white gentleman, a Mexican gentleman, a Black gentleman. We really don’t know.”
Padgett added that the department can also be audited and that it should give the public peace of mind that officers and non-sworn members of the traffic department are rightfully issuing violations, and not being discriminatory.
Mayers said the image of the driver is just one method used to make sure the driver matches the vehicle’s owner, but that images aren’t permanently stored.
The license plate, make and model of the vehicle, and registered owner are verified using the National Crime Information Center database, which the police department uses to see if the vehicle number matches the vehicle captured by the cameras, Mayers said. Verra Mobility also does its own verification of the same information before sending each violation to the department, he added.
The registered owner will receive the violation notice even if they weren’t driving the vehicle at the time of the violation, Mayers said.
Each person who reviews a violation also makes sure the light was actually red during the incident and must have documentation with time stamps corresponding to the time of the violation, Mayers said, adding that the police department also won’t consider any violations without video footage.
Mayers said that those who receive a violation should check the video footage before attempting to dispute, and added that not all those who were photographed by the camera should be worried that they will receive a violation. The cameras will flash to readjust based on how the lighting and weather change throughout the day, which is why drivers may think they are being photographed, despite no apparent violation.
“Be rest assured, this is not a robot that is sending these out,” Mayers said. “Just because … a photo is taken does not mean that truly is a violation at that point.”
‘Someone’s going to get hurt’
Padgett said that people have claimed to be wrongfully cited and posted online about it, but said that regardless of people’s feelings, he knows that the cameras have been an effective tool at improving public safety, just based on the fact that red lights have become a part of everyday conversation.
“Even if you hate that camera, when you come up to those intersections, you might be cursing the camera, but you’re stopping before the stop bar (to avoid a violation),” Padgett said, adding that the cameras are also an easier way to enforce traffic safety laws. “There’s no doubt in my mind, based off of community conversation, that these are highly effective tools.”
He said that itap difficult for officers to capture the information they need for a red light violation while sitting at an intersection, and that there is often no good location for an officer to station themselves anyway. An officer may catch two red light violations an hour, but the cameras can automatically capture every potential violation in an hour, Padgett said.
Mayers said the violations aren’t about generating revenue, but changing traffic behaviors in Loveland.
He said, for example, that there are two hotels near the Eisenhower and Boise intersection that bring a lot of foot traffic to the area, and he worries someone is going to get seriously injured from a driver who doesn’t stop at that light. He said that he sees drivers ignore stop signs, roll through red lights, and fail to look both ways before continuing or making a turn. Taking the extra few seconds to stop and make sure the road is clear can prevent a bicyclist, pedestrian or runner from being hit, Mayers said.
“Someone’s going to get hurt. This is what the whole change in behavior is about,” Mayers said. “… Just a rule of thumb real quick: If the wheels are spinning, the wheels are still turning, it’s not a stop.”
