Stop light cameras in Fort Collins adjusted to issue tickets for speeding

The City of Fort Collins will soon begin issuing citations for people caught speeding through intersections with traffic cameras. The city will be turning on the speed detection function on their intersection cameras, which before only monitored drivers for running red lights.

The change comes after Colorado lawmakers changed state law to allow automated systems to issue citations to drivers for speeding.

Prior to the new law many cities, including Fort Collins, owned and operated speed enforcement cameras. However, they had to be monitored by a human while in operation.

The new law now allows cities to modify their current cameras to issue citations for speeding without human supervision.

"Our traffic unit is small, there are only six assigned officers. So, we can't cover the entire city alone," said Michael Avrech, a lieutenant for Fort Collins Police Services.

Avrech said the department has often had to rely on patrol officers to also help enforce speed laws due to their traffic unit's size. Now, with the assistance of the cameras, officers will be able to focus more of their time on other traffic infractions or crimes.

In order to utilize the cameras, Fort Collins Police had to provide statistics and surveys that showed the corridors being monitored had histories of traffic safety issues and concerns.

In collecting their data, the city identified 21 thoroughfares that could use the help of camera monitoring. Avrech noted that a majority of the major roadways through the city, including Harmony Road, Mulberry Street, College Avenue, Lemay Avenue, and Timberline Road.

The city has used a fleet of Jeep vehicles to issue speeding citations in the past. However, they were always manned.

"We have had a speed program since 1997," Avrech said. "Previously, it required a person to be in the vehicle during that enforcement period."

Avrech said the city plans to start placing the Jeep vehicles for enforcement without human presence. Those vehicles will start issuing $40 citations to people driving more than 10 miles per hour over the speed limit.

Anyone going over 25 miles per hour over the limit will have an officer sent to their home to receive a citation.

The city is also planning to deploy much smaller boxes on the sides of roadways that will do the same type of enforcement. All cameras, including those at intersections, are clearly labeled with signs warning the public of upcoming monitoring.

The cameras already installed at intersections will soon be switched over to also enforcing speed laws.

Those cameras will enter a 30-day warning period, where those who are caught speeding in the first month of operation will receive a warning. After that window closes citations will be issued in the same manner as the other cameras.

Avrech said the new capabilities of the cameras will allow his officers to focus on other infractions while freeing time to work more closely with the community on other needs.

"It gives more opportunity for our officers to focus proactivity on crimes," Avrech said. "Fort Collins has a vision zero plan to reduce and eliminate serious injury crashes and fatalities, so this is directly related to that."

FCPS said it will be creating a resource of its website that will allow the community to monitor statistics from the cameras including the number of citations issued and the amount of money they bring in.