Speed cameras in Maryland collect $64 million in revenue
Nearly 1.6 million motorists in Maryland were captured by a speed camera in fiscal 2018, according to an analysis by AAA. That brought in nearly $64 million in ticket revenue.
The motorist group also ranked which municipalities and counties took in the most money. Montgomery County topped the list, with $15.9 million, AAA said in a statement. Baltimore City, Prince George’s and Baltimore counties, and College Park rounded out the top five, as part of what AAA calls the “Million Dollar Club.” Those five areas alone took in more than 60 percent of Maryland’s speed camera revenue for fiscal 2018.
There are more than 40 jurisdictions in Maryland that have speed monitoring and safety systems, according to AAA. Nearly a third of the speed camera tickets were given to drivers who were “caught speeding one mile per hour over the threshold speed” and that “triggers the flash of the speed camera.” Most violators, AAA said, paid their tickets on time.
“Speedy violators must pay a $40 fine for each infraction caught on speed camera and in many cases it is enough to modify bad driving habits or to compel some motorists to drive with a halo around their heads when they are within range of a speed camera,” said John B. Townsend II, a spokesman for AAA Mid-Atlantic.
AAA looked at data from a variety of sources, including Maryland Police Training and Standards Commission, the state comptroller’s office, Maryland Department of Legislative Services, along with the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services and local police departments.
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The group’s analysis also found that since fiscal 2014, some 6.3 million speeding motorists have shelled out $288.5 million in fines from speed cameras across Maryland.
AAA had done a similar analysis of speed camera tickets issued in the District earlier in the year. It found that the District issued more than a million speed camera tickets. Tickets from speed cameras ranged from $50 to $300 per ticket. That compared with $40 on average in Maryland.
Virginia doesn’t utilize speed cameras.
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