PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — Speed cameras are expected to be up and running by the end of the summer. The Prince William County Board of Supervisors approved the program unanimously in April.
The pilot program will focus on school and construction zones, as allowed by Virginia Code. That rule leaves out one of the county's biggest problem spots. Cardinal Drive is notorious for speeding and racing.
There have been three speed-related deaths along Cardinal Drive in the last three years. Deborah Talbot was one of them. She was walking her dog in May of 2020 when a speeding car ran off the road and hit her. Lori Rulapaugh was her best friend.
"It's been horrible. I can't talk about it without tearing up. It changes your life forever. Once they are hit because of speed and there's a fatality, you can't bring them back," said Rulapaugh.
Rulapaugh has been pressuring county leaders for safety changes along Cardinal Drive ever since the accident. She thought speed cameras might be the answer until she realized the road her friend was killed on could not be included.
"I was angry. I was very disappointed," Rulapaugh told WUSA9 in a recent interview.
That's because, under Virginia Code, speed cameras can only be put up in school and construction zones, which is something Cardinal Drive does not have.
The dangerous road is in Neabsco Supervisor Victor Angry's District.
"Let us not forget how we got here. We are left with only the tools that the state has allowed us to use," Supervisor Angry said.
While there aren't any schools or construction zones in the immediate area of Cardinal Drive, there are several daycares along the stretch of road.
Supervisor Angry tells WUSA9 he plans to push state lawmakers to make an amendment that would include daycares in the current law. Until that happens, Angry hopes the new speed cameras erected across the county in other places will change the mindset of drivers, encouraging them to slow down even on roads where no one is watching.
"At some point folks are going to need to realize we don't need to have a body count of 50 to start saying okay, let's put everything we have at this," Angry said.
The Neabsco District Supervisor also added that he was going to lobby to have a more permanent police presence along Cardinal Drive to reduce speeding.