SFist loves cameras. Public, private, wherever, whenever -- we want them up, we want them rolling. So, we were tickled exuberant after hearing that San Francisco transit officials plan to install continuously-running cameras on Muni buses. The cameras would "trigger an alert every time a driver hits the brakes hard, swerves or gets into a collision," according to reports, and be placed inside and outside buses. If all goes according to plan, they will capture electrifying footage like this.
This plan will cost around $2 million, with an addition $400,000 a year going toward video monitoring. $129 million deficit be damned!
Although, sadly, not everyone is thrilled at the idea of Big Brother's continuing encroachment of Muni. James Dupre tells SF Examiner, "If you're in the public, you should not be afraid of being [videotaped] doing whatever you're going to do. Enough of that occurs already." Bah! What if all of us were being videotaped, God willing -- and no one watches? That's the real fear here.
Anyway, transit officials hope to get the cameras up by fall.