Speed Cameras Coming to Some City School Zones

Speeding in school zones could soon cost drivers in the Annapolis area up to $40.

Last week, the Annapolis City Council approved legislation allowing for the placement of speed cameras in certain designated school zones.

It’s an issue the council has been looking at for a while, with presentations and meetings on the topic dating as far back as last fall, according to reports from The Capital.

Alderwoman Sheila Finlayson (D-4th Ward), chairwoman of the council’s public safety committee that gave the legislation a favorable recommendation, said after the meeting that she was glad it passed.

“I’m very pleased. You know the state gave us enabling legislation to allow these cameras in school zones. They’ve restricted how much we can charge and that’s why the fee is only $40 so that it won’t be abusive. So it is all about public safety,” Finlayson said.  

As noted in the legislation, “Senate Bill 277 passed by the Maryland General Assembly allows municipalities to use photo speed monitoring systems in school zones and to issue citations or warnings to owners of vehicles that speed in excess of at least 12 miles per hour above the posted speed limit.”

Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen said the next step is to begin a request-for-proposals (RFP) process to select a contractor. While it is unclear how long it will be until the placement of the cameras, Cohen said it will take at least a few months.

As Patch reported in September, . When asked if there could be a potential outcry from residents about the vote, Cohen emphasized that drivers will only get fined if they are going significantly over the speed limit in a school zone.

“It’s hard to get too bent out of shape for being fined $40, if you’re speeding in a school zone,” Cohen said.

He added that before the legislation is rolled out, he will work to make sure the council members have the chance to give their opinions and are comfortable with the steps the police department takes to carry this out, noting that it is a “sensitive issue.”

Annapolis Police Chief Michael Pristoop, who made presentations to the council on the topic, said the speed cameras are something the police department supports.

“The police department favors automated speed enforcement in the city as a pro-active way of reducing accidents in our school zones. Overall, the department does a good job of speed enforcement, approaching it as a public safety concern and often in response to community complaints,” Pristoop said in an email  to Patch. “Since we already focus our efforts in areas disproportionately affected by accidents, automated speed enforcement is a force multiplier.”

Pristoop said there were 700 accidents in the city in 2010—10 percent higher than in 2009. He said the city is on track to have the same number or more this year.

While the exact location for the cameras is unclear, one focus appears to be on the Forest Drive area.

In March, a 13-year-old student was hit by a car while t. No charges were filed in the incident and police told Patch at the time it appeared to be pedestrian error. However the incident did come up in a .

“Although there are about a dozen schools in Annapolis, our intention is to focus this technology in areas where speeding and accidents are prevalent,” Pristoop said in the email. “Eighteen [percent] of all reported accidents were along Forest Drive. We're convinced that there's a causal relationship between speed and accidents and want to do our very best to reduce occurrences of both.

“Public safety in our city has markedly improved in the past few years. We feel this will be a small but effective measure to help keep people safe, especially children," he stated.

Bob Mosier, spokesman for Anne Arundel County Public Schools, said that while he can’t speak about how the legislation originated in Annapolis, anything that increases safety for students walking to and from school is something the school system can support.

“We are certainly in favor of anything, any measure that will increase the awareness of the dangers that exist in the roadways as students travel to and from school,” Mosier said.

Mosier said currently, roughly 21,000 of the school system’s 76,600 students live in non-transport zones. These are areas less than one mile from the assigned school for elementary students and less than one-mile-and-a-half for middle and high school students.

Last week in a Patch Poll, 64 percent of the 37 voters .

What are your thoughts on the issue?