March 06, 2024
Courtesy/PennDOT
This week, cameras started catching drivers and fining them for speeding in active work zones.
On Tuesday, Pennsylvania drivers began getting ticketed for speeding in construction zones as state entities started to enforce the Work Zone Speed Safety Camera program.
The program uses electric speed timing devices to detect and record drivers going more than 11 miles over the speed limit in a work zone. A five-year pilot of the program had been in place before Gov. Josh Shapiro made it permanent by signing H.B. 1284 into law in December.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission and Pennsylvania State Police made the announcement Tuesday that they began enforcement.
According to PennDOT, the systems are only in use in active work zones, and new high-visibility signs will inform drivers when the cameras are present. Vehicle owners will get a warning letter in the mail for their first violation, a $75 fine for the second offense and a $150 fine for a third infraction and subsequent incidents. No points will be added to licenses for these violations.
"Speed safety cameras are important tools for discouraging drivers from exceeding posted speeds," PA Turnpike Chief Operating Officer Craig Shuey said in a statement. "Paying attention and reducing speed are critical as drivers approach a work zone where workers are inches from live traffic. The goal of this program is to build awareness and most importantly, to change unsafe driving behaviors."
In 2022, there were 1,293 crashes in work zones and 14 workers were killed in work zone crashes in the state. In 42% of work zone crashes, workers were injured or killed. During the five-year pilot program, PennDOT said work zone speeding over 11 mph was reduced by 47% and work zone crashes were reduced up to 50% if a speed enforcement vehicle was at the work site.
The legislation, which became effective on Feb. 15, altered the pilot program's parameters slightly. Most significantly, it added a 15-day warning period for drivers. If a driver speeds through a work zone and is caught by the safety cameras, they won't receive a second offense notice until 15 days after the mailing date of their first offense. The hope is that drivers can become aware of the program and adjust their driving behaviors. However, after those 15 days, they can receive multiple consecutive violations, even on the same day.
Drivers will have a clean slate with no violations under the new program even if they were caught during the pilot.
"The Work Zone Speed Safety Camera program is about making work zones safer for both workers and motorists by reducing speeds and changing driver behavior,” PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll said. "Data from the pilot program shows it was successful, and we’re pleased that it’s now a permanent program in Pennsylvania."
With HB 1284, the legislation that made the work zone camera program permanent, officials could expand speed camera technology to more non-work-zone Philly streets.
