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A new House bill introduced in the Virginia Legislature amends current speed camera regulations. HB2041 proposes allowing localities to install speed cameras in high traffic areas other than work and school zones. However, the bill also proposes some restrictions on the cameras.

The most significant proposed change is that localities will no longer get to keep excess revenue made off speed cameras. The bill states speed camera revenue will be “deposited in a fund used solely for the operating costs of such speed safety cameras, except that any excess moneys in such fund shall be annually deposited in the Virginia Highway Safety Improvement Program established pursuant to § 33.2-373.”

Former Virginia House of Delegates member Tim Anderson said he’s interested in seeing if this change will impact how many speed cameras cities continue to use. He said he’s heard the general consensus is that cities will want to take down the cameras if they don’t get to keep the revenue from them.

In regards to this speculation, the Suffolk Police Department said they are aware of this pending legislation but don’t have an answer right now as to how it will affect the city’s current cameras. 

City officials said $12,522,146 has been generated from speed cameras, with $4,614,935 used for vendor expenses including mailing and equipment costs.

With that money, the city has completed 10 public safety projects and has 21 more underway. The completed projects include a crosswalk between Kings Fork High School and the middle school, traffic cameras on the corner of Main Street and Washington Street, police trikes, bulletproof vests for the Sheriff’s department, speed feedback signs, bomb detection canines, and improvements to Mill Street guardrails.  

Some of the projects on the city’s “underway” list include a Portsmouth Boulevard and Suburban Drive pedestrian signal and crosswalk, a drug IV box exchange, upgrades and additions to downtown street lights, a train information program, various sidewalk and crosswalk additions, and improvements to Fire Station 3 security.

Another proposal included in HB2041 is to allow work zone speed cameras to operate only when people are working in those designated zones. 

The bill also mentions adding speed feedback signs in front of speed cameras to let drivers know the speed limit is dropping and to make them aware of how fast they are going.

In regards to this part of the bill specifically, Anderson said one of his main concerns with Suffolk is how long it takes their speed camera violations to get mailed out. People don’t know they’re speeding until weeks later, he said.  

“If you’re in this to make it safe, to slow people down in school zones, to slow people down in work zones, if that’s the real motivation and not revenue, then you need to put a feedback sign up about 1,000 feet before the camera, which flashes and tells people, ‘Hey, you’re speeding, slow down,’” Anderson said. “Because fundamentally, if you’re trying to slow down cars around a school zone because you’re trying to keep it safe for kids, then you should want people to understand that they are speeding to immediately slow them down.”

He added that this would hopefully reduce the amount of speed camera violations, which would generate less revenue for the city, which could deter cities from wanting to install those feedback signs. 

Anderson argued that if the main concern is about the safety of citizens on the roads, then HB2041 seems like a fair trade. There are some proposed speed camera restrictions, but it would also allow cities more freedom in regards to where they put the cameras.