WSDOT to use camera vehicle to catch construction-zone speeders

By Thacher Schmid

Speedy drivers on Interstate 5 are about to meet a new adversary faster than they are.

It’s a high-tech camera-computer system inside a white van, with a big, 4-foot-by-5-foot sign on the back.

Sitting near road construction zones, the camera system will snap a photo of a speeding vehicle, and its

registered owner may later get a ticket in the mail.

State transportation officials hope the cameras will make roadside construction safer and reduce the nearly 2,000

traffic incidents that occur in state highway work zones.

While other traffic cameras are already in use in a few locales around the state — like red light cameras in

Lakewood, Wash. — the pilot program will be the first use of such technology by Washington Department of

Transportation. It’s unique in its use of a mobile van and adjustable speed thresholds.

How fast you’ll need to go above the limit to qualify for a ticket is something of a mystery.

“There’s more questions than answers,” at this point, said Sgt. Freddy Williams of the Washington State Patrol,

which is working with WSDOT on the program.

WSDOT spokeswoman Alice Fiman said the project is “all about safety,” not making more revenue. Williams

said the money from the program would mostly go to local law enforcement and courts.

“We would be happy if not one ticket would be issued if people would slow down,” Fiman said.

There is only one camera vehicle right now and it will only appear in construction zones in the next three to four

weeks, with signs warning motorists in advance, Fiman said. Chehalis and Grand Mound will be priorities, she

said.

The pilot project was authorized by the state Legislature last year and WSDOT is expected to report back to

lawmakers in 2009. Fiman said the agency welcomes public comments on the project.

Fiman said there will be an operator inside the van monitoring the process in real time. The contractor will

conduct “speed studies” before beginning and will consult the local state patrol to determine the “threshold” for

tickets.

If a motorist is moving with traffic but faster than a work zone speed limit — say, 64 mph in a 60 mph zone —

the device won’t issue a ticket, Fiman said. State law also mandates that tickets sent be “infractions,” not

“moving violations” and won’t become part of a motorist’s record.

The registered owner of the vehicle will be sent a ticket, as will the court system. Registered owners who

weren’t driving the vehicle will have the option to sign and mail an “affidavit of non-operation,” but if no action

is taken, the case will be sent to collections.

Similar systems have been put into use in California, Illinois and New Mexico.

Fiman doesn’t think the first automated process for issuing tickets on state highways will be unpopular, but

WSDOT plans a “major media blitz” prior to the launch.

“It’s just people are curious,” Fiman said. “It doesn’t really seem that controversial, because it’s all about safety.”

http://www.tdn.com/articles/2008/07/23/top_story/doc48868daec614e925657068.prt 7/23/2008