EAST BRUNSWICK — Digital cameras designed to catch drivers who run a red light at Route 18 and Tices Lane will soon be installed after over a year of setbacks.

A resolution awarding a contract for an automated photo enforcement system at the intersection was tabled at a March 22 Township Council meeting, but Mayor David Stahl said that officials will likely move ahead with the system within the next month.

When implemented, the cameras will take pictures of those vehicles that pass through a red signal. Police will mail the violators a summons along with the photo, and they will then have the option of fighting the ticket on court or paying a fine.

The red light cameras, which use sensors working in conjunction with traffic signals, were originally offered to the township in December 2008. At that time, East Brunswick was one of a handful of towns chosen to participate in the state’s Red Light Running Automated Enforcement pilot program. The towns, also including Brick Township and Newark, were selected from a pool of numerous applicants that demonstrated a history of violations at a given location.

In East Brunswick, Route 18 at Tices Lane was an obvious choice, as it is one of the township’s busiest intersections, and has long been prone to traffic accidents and red light violations, despite police efforts to enforce traffic laws there.

In seeking the state grant to participate in the pilot program, the township submitted crash, injury and citation data from 2005 to 2008 at the intersection. Its application focused on Route 18 northbound at Tices Lane, but the camera system may be used to detect red light violations in all four directions.

When approved for the program, East Brunswick police officials interviewed a pool of six vendors to determine which would install and monitor the camera equipment. The township was expected to have chosen a vendor by January 2009 and have the equipment installed soon thereafter; however, the installation was delayed due to contractual issues and other concerns.

Stahl said the main concern was the possibility of an increase in accidents with the installations of the system.

“T-bone accidents, the more dangerous accidents, usually decline, which is a good thing,” Stahl said. “But there tends to be an uptick in other types of accidents in the beginning. There are several studies that have shown this trend.”

Stahl said that due to the concern for a potential accident increase, officials felt uncomfortable with the two-year length of the contract.

“We’d be bound to this for much longer than we feel comfortable, if accidents don’t decline. So we shortened the time frame from two years to six months,” he explained. “We’re content with that. Data shows there shouldn’t be much of a concern, but we wanted to make sure we did what was best for the community.”

Stahl said the resolution was tabled due to the absence of council President Edward Luster, and that if it is approved this month, installation could begin shortly thereafter.

Once installed, the contract vendor will monitor and detect violators, and send the images to the police department. The police will then review the submissions to determine whether a red light violation has occurred and whether to issue a citation.

Those who receive a ticket will incur an $85 fine, but not the traffic points usually associated with moving violations. The registered owner of the vehicle will receive the summons, regardless of who the driver was.

Signs will be placed at the intersection to alert drivers that the traffic law is being enforced by photograph.

The grant for the trial program will run for three years, and the township will have to submit periodic reports to the state, detailing increases or decreases in violations and accidents at the intersection, and evaluating the effectiveness of the system.

The Township Council is expected to vote on a resolution for the system’s contract at an April 12 council meeting.