Council Bluffs, IA Mobility & Curb Rules: Red-Light Cameras (2026)

CBMC 9.16.055, added by Ordinance 5870 in 2005 and last amended by Ordinance 6450 on April 26, 2021, authorizes the city to erect an automated traffic enforcement system at intersections the mayor or a designee selects. The equipment may be owned and operated by a private contractor, but the police department retains supervisory control and reviews every photograph, video, or digital image before deciding which vehicle owners receive a notice of violation. Liability attaches to the registered vehicle owner, identified through Iowa Department of Transportation or another state's registration records, if the vehicle crosses the marked stop line or the intersection plane while that vehicle's signal shows a steady red light or red arrow; a stolen-vehicle report covering the relevant period is a valid rebuttal.

The citation is a $100 civil violation and is never reported to the Iowa DOT or another state's department to affect the owner's driving record. An owner may request an administrative, in-person review before the Council Bluffs City Attorney's Office by following the deadline printed on the citation; the outcome can dismiss the citation, require payment, or, at the appellant's request, convert it into a municipal infraction under Iowa Code 364.22 and CBMC 1.95 that goes to trial before a judge or magistrate at the Pottawattamie County Courthouse, adding state-mandated court costs. Unpaid, unreviewed citations are referred to a collection agency. The code contains no separate school-zone speed camera chapter.