Eighteen months after the District of Columbia began using cameras to cite motorists who run red lights, red-light violations have fallen 59 percent at intersections equipped with the devices, the Metropolitan Police Department reported Wednesday.

Thirty-nine intersections in the District are currently monitored by red-light cameras. The number of violations captured on film at these locations has dropped from 37,823 to 15,516 per month over the course of the program.

"Twenty-two thousand fewer drivers a month are running red lights at these 39 intersections, which translates into 22,000 potential tragedies averted," Chief of Police Charles H. Ramsey said. "More and more motorists are changing their behavior and obeying the law because of the effectiveness of our red-light camera program," he added.

DC's photo enforcement initiative began August 1, 1999, with the installation of the first two red-light cameras. When a motorist enters a photo-enforced intersection after the traffic signal has turned red, the camera takes a picture of the rear of the vehicle. Based on the license plate number, a Notice of Infraction is mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle, as provided by District law. Each red-light violation carries a $75 fine; no points are currently being assessed against violators.

Through January 31, 2001, more than 190,000 photo enforcement citations were mailed and more than $9.8 million in fines paid.

Each year in the United States more than 800 people die, and an estimated 200,000 are injured, in crashes that involve red-light running, according to a recent Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study. Institute research indicates that photo enforcement cameras have reduced red-light running by approximately 40 percent nationwide. The District's decrease of 59 percent is well above the national average.

More information about the District's photo enforcement program, including a map of current and planned camera locations, can be found on the Police Department's Web site: www.mpdc.org . Residents are also invited to use the Web site to recommend future camera locations.