FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. — Friday saw the beginning of a new speed camera pilot program that aims to make drivers slow down near schools in Fairfax County.
According to county officials, the Speed Camera Pilot Program brought the installation of speed cameras to eight school zones, with two more in the works.
Officials claim data shows that school zone speeding is a concern in the county.
"In the five school zones surveyed last year, thousands of drivers exceeded the speed limit by more than 10 mph during the sample period," the county website reads.
County officials hope the speed cameras will convince drivers to slow down and keep residents safe.
"We're not looking to have a lot of tickets," Fairfax County Police Captain Alan Hanson said of the program goals. "We're looking to have to slow people down."
The speed cameras are only active when the school zone lights are flashing, typically during morning and afternoon hours.
The cameras are located near the following schools:
- Chesterbrook Elementary School: Kirby Road near the school (Dranesville District)
- Irving Middle School: Old Keene Mill Road near the school (Braddock District)
- Key Middle School: Franconia Road- near the school (Franconia District)
- London Towne Elementary School: Stone Road near the school (Sully District)
- Sleepy Hollow Elementary School: Sleepy Hollow Road near the school (Mason District)
- South County Middle School: Silverbrook Road near the school (Mt. Vernon District)
- Terraset Elementary School: Soapstone Drive near the school (Hunter Mill District)
- West Springfield High School: Rolling Road near the school (Springfield District)
The process for getting the first eight cameras installed took nearly a year, and required input from school officials, a community survey and several citizen complaints. Hanson added that the county also saw several tragedies on the roads involving teens in the last year, including a crash on Blake Lane in June 2022 that left two Oakton High School students dead.
"Fairfax County Public Schools has been working hard to establish that as a school zone," Hanson said. "It's not up and running yet, but we expect in the not too distant future."
Two more cameras are coming soon, including one on Blake Lane near that deadly crash site, and a work zone speed camera at Route 28 (near Old Mill Road). Depending on how this pilot program works after six months, the county plans to add 40 more cameras.
For the first 30 days of the program, speeders will get a warning rather than an official citation. After 30 days, speeders will be ticketed between $50 and $100 depending on how fast they are going.
For more information on the Speed Camera Pilot Program, click here.