Texas city tosses petition to shutter red light cameras

June 12, 2013: Helwig Van Der Grinten, who has never received a red-light ticket from a camera like this one at U.S. Highway 59 at Texas Highway 6, said local lawmakers in Texas are 'turning a deaf ear' to residents of Sugar Land. (Courtesy: Helwig Van Der Grinten)

The Texas city of Sugar Land is the latest community to find itself divided by the red light cameras that line municipal coffers even as they anger the driving public.

A citizens group led by a retired U.S. Navy Reserve captain filed a petition of nearly 3,000 signatures to have the cameras' continued use put on the November ballot. But in a surprise move, the council cited technicalities to toss out the petition, leavingbusiness development and growth strategies for a range of emerging tech startups, and devoted a large part of her MBA to the topic of social entrepreneurship.

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