Speed cameras installed on a single Oregon street caught more than 1,000 drivers going too fast in under two weeks, according to a report.
Two cameras were installed May 25 on Southwest Oregon Street in Sherwood, about 16 miles south of Portland, and have since caught 1,045 drivers going 11 miles per hour or more over the speed limit, KPTV reported.
Residents welcomed the cameras, which are set up on either side of the two-way street, saying that dangerously fast drivers have been an issue in the community for years.
“We have terrible speeding,” said Kylie Asher, who lives nearby.
“This isn’t a freeway,” added Laura, who has lived in the neighborhood for 50 years.
“And it’s not just regular cars and trucks. It’s also construction trucks that go through here,” Asher added. “Not a single person really slows down.”
The cameras were installed as part of an effort by the Sherwood Police Department to expand its Photo Enforcement Program into school zones and residential neighborhoods. Southwest Oregon Street, which cuts through parts of the city’s downtown but is largely residential, has a speed limit of 25 mph.
Police said that drivers caught speeding a 11 mph or more over the limit will receive a warning in the mail to start. However, starting June 23, drivers caught speeding will start to receive citations.
The fine for speeding in a non-school zone can range from $165 to $440 depending on how fast the driver was going over the limit. Speeding in a school zone has fines ranging from $225 to $875, according to KATU.
Police said that $66 from each fine will go to the state and Washington County. The remaining money will support the Photo Enforcement Program.
“The program is funded by speeding violators, not by taxes,” police chief Ty Hanlon said in a press release. “The community controls the outlet; the less speeding occurs, the less revenue the program generates. Zero violations would mean zero revenue, and we’d consider that a successful outcome.”
Asher says she hasn’t noticed much of a difference in speeding just yet. “Hopefully, when the actual citations start happening, then there will actually be a change with things,” she said.
Police said that the cameras will stay in the same location for at least 30 days.
“When the units are moved to a new location, this information will be transparently posted on social media and the city’s website each time they are moved,” police said in a press release.
However, some residents hope they will become a permanent fixture on Southwest Oregon Street.
“I’m afraid once they move them, they’ll start [speeding] all over again,” she said. “I’d like to see them permanently left here,” Laura said. “I wouldn’t speed in your neighborhood, don’t speed in mine.”
