Drivers must master many rules of the road to be safe. One of the most important is adhering to school zone speed limits. Officials put these special speed limits in place to lessen the chance of car wrecks while children attend or leave school. Now, South Miami has traffic cams in place to enforce these speed limits and to send citations without police traffic stops. 

South Miami is using traffic cams to enforce school zone speed limits

Traffic cams have grown in popularity in several cities around the country. This is also the case in South Miami, Florida, where they have been using them in school zones to lower instances of car wrecks around kids. According to NBC 6 South Florida, they were in a test phase up until recently. Now, people who speed in school zones will receive citations by mail instead of police having to conduct traffic stops. According to reports, the tickets are $100 each. 

Since school started in May, the traffic cams caught about 3,520 vehicles speeding in South Miami school zones. These people were each given warnings for the infraction. Naturally, repeat offenders made up some of the 3,520 warnings from the police department. Because of the warnings, law enforcement officers have also been able to pinpoint certain school zones that need special attention in terms of enforcement. These areas had more instances of speeding than others, making them more dangerous to students and staff. 

Regarding the school zone speed limits in South Miami, drivers are allowed to go up to 15 miles per hour. The traffic cams will alert the police department about cars going at least 10 mph over the speed limit. These cameras begin monitoring traffic 30 minutes before school starts and check for speeding cars 30 minutes after the school day ends. They are also active for the duration of school hours