San Francisco is almost done installing several speed cameras at select intersections across the city, and those devices are scheduled to go online in March.
The message from the city is simple: If you’re driving on the streets of San Francisco, slow down or get a speeding ticket.
San Francisco began installing the cameras late last year, and when they go live in the spring, the city will be the first in California to operate the devices under a new law.
AB 645 became law last year, making California the 19th state in the country to allow the use of speed cameras. Data from other states with speed cameras strongly suggest they work.
One of the targeted intersections in San Francisco is Geary Boulevard and Seventh Avenue. Geary is one of the busiest streets in the city. Other cameras will be scattered along busy thoroughfares where there are high rates of injury crashes, schools in proximity and a documented history of illegal sideshows.
Once cameras are activated, notices for violators will go out in the first two months. After those first 60 days, the following fines kick in: $50 for traveling 11-15 mph over the speed limit; $100 for going 16-25 mph over the limit; and $200 for driving 26 mph or more over the limit.
Fines could go as high as $500. They are civil penalties and not moving violations, which means they won't count as points against someone’s driver’s license.
Local
San Francisco says it is doing its part to inform drivers of what’s coming.
"We want everyone to know exactly where these cameras are, exactly how the program works so they can change their behavior and just slow down," said Shannon Hake, Livable Streets program manager for SFMTA. "That's really what we want."
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Walk SF will lead a news conference at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday to celebrate and mark the installation of the speed cameras.
