“Super speeding” in D.C. can cost you up to $500. And under the District’s Vision Zero Initiative, speed camera ticket citations are on track to pass previous records.
In the 2018 fiscal year, 1.1 million citations were issued by speed cameras in the District, resulting in a record-breaking $104.5 million in revenue, according to AAA’s latest report. During the first six months of the 2019 fiscal year, more than 570,000 motorists were ticketed, bringing in nearly $45 million in fine revenue.
Under the initiative, speeding fines have increased and speed limits have been lowered along District roads near schools, playgrounds, recreational centers and other areas likely to see foot traffic. That contributed to a rise in the yearly average number of citations.
Penalties for drivers going 25 mph or more over the speed limit also increased during the first half of calendar 2019; about 3,800 drivers received “super speeder” citations, a penalty that starts at $400.
The District’s speed camera program, which began in 2007, has collected $764,512,631 in revenue through March 31 of this year.
The crackdown on speeders continues with a new effort to enhance the initiative. On Thursday, the Council Committee on Transportation and the Environment will hold a public hearing on five traffic safety bills. One would train up to 10 residents in each ward to use an app to photograph violators in places such as crosswalks, bus stops and bike lanes.
That bill would also reduce the District’s default speed limit of 25 mph to 20 mph in residential areas and along local roads. In addition, it would prohibit right turns on red throughout the District within a half-mile of schools and in intersections with bike lanes.
