Montgomery County on Monday reached a milestone in becoming the state’s first jurisdiction to launch an automated speed program.
Officials marked the occasion — which has been years in the making — with much fanfare, including demonstrations of the cameras, which are now being deployed in Rockville, that eventually will be spread throughout the 20-square-mile county.
Maurice Nelson, program director for Montgomery County’s automatic traffic-enforcement unit, said the county is by no means the first nationally to use camera equipment but that it is taking an untested approach by setting up the units solely in residential and school zones with speed limits of 35 mph or less.
“In Boulder, Colo., they do it in just the school zones, in D.C. everywhere,” Nelson said in listing off examples. “But to concentrate on solely school and residential zones is so different.”
For mobile units, the cameras are placed in the back of vans. Then, once a car passes the van, its speed is clocked automatically, with numerous photo images captured on a laptop that is also inside the vehicle.
Those that have surpassed the speed limit by 10 mph or more will receive citations by mail.
Nelson said the technology really is no different than the radar officers have traditionally used clocking vehicles while sitting on the side of a road. The difference is the precision and much greater accuracy.
For the next 30 days, the program will be in pilot mode, with those caught speeding merely issued warnings. After that time, the tickets will get to them within a week of the clocked violation.
County Police Chief Thomas Manger emphasized Monday the enormous community support that has accompanied the program’s launch, from the input police received via a citizen’s committee to prior surveys of drivers’ reactions to speed camera enforcement.
“We have gotten hundreds of calls saying people want this in their neighborhoods,” he said.
On a state level, the AAA has surveyed Marylanders about automated enforcement, similarly finding widespread support.
John Townsend, a AAA spokesman, said Monday his agency’s surveys indicated that 74 percent of Marylanders are in favor of the program and 58 percent said they would also support speed-camera enforcement on highways and major roadways.
“Speeding is a pernicious problem in our society,” he said.
