With passage of bill, speed cameras will be piloted in six Californian cities and counties

The latest data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration documents a 3.3 percent decrease in roadway deaths in the United States over the first half of this year. Even so, the estimated 19,000 roadway deaths that have occurred so far remains significantly higher than the 17,000 fatalities recorded during the same period in 2019. Many communities are combating this rise in traffic deaths with speed cameras, which have been shown to reduce severe and fatal crashes by as much as 58 percent, according to a statement from Walk San Francisco (Walk SF), an advocacy organization.

California is the latest state to turn to cameras as a deterrent for speed—a primary cause of traffic deaths nationwide, and the state’s leading cause—joining 21 other states and 205 local governments across the country that have passed similar measures. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the legislation last week, piloting the deployment of speed cameras in Los Angeles, San Jose, Oakland, Glendale and Long Beach, along with the city and county of San Francisco under a speed enforcement program.

“This is a huge win for safe streets, and so many of us who have worked on this are celebrating today. We are grateful that the Governor saw the urgent need for this life saving solution,” said Jodie Medeiros, executive director of Walk San Francisco in the statement. “Dangerous speeding hurts and kills people every day in California, and every possible action must be taken to prevent these senseless tragedies.”

In San Francisco, the bill allows administrators to pilot 33 cameras, installed on streets with the highest crash rates, or in school zones. The exact positioning of each camera will be decided in part by the local community to ensure equity. The program will launch in early 2025 and is authorized through 2032.

According to an explainer from the National Conference of State Legislators, speed cameras use radar or lidar detectors embedded in the road to measure a vehicle’s speed. If a vehicle is traveling faster than the posted speed limit, typically by more than 10 or 11 miles per hour, the camera records its speed and license plate, documenting the date, time and location. A citation is then mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The California legislation, Assembly Bill 645, “builds in strong privacy and equity considerations,” the statement from Walk SF says. “The bill protects privacy by banning any facial recognition—only license plate data will be collected, and the data must be expunged after a citation is issued.”

Fines start at $50 for drivers going 11 miles per hour or above, and increase in correlation with speed. Tickets will be like parking tickets in that no points will be added to a driver’s record. Cities can reduce fines for low-income drivers, or allow them to serve community service hours instead. And notably, the program is overseen by the city’s transportation department, not the police department.

Among other things, the bill requires participating communities to adopt a Speed Safety System Use Policy and a Speed Safety System Impact Report before implementing the cameras, and to engage in a public information campaign at least 30 days before the start. Warning notices instead of violations will be issued during the first 60 days of the program.