Cameras aim to slow down speeders. Many cities are adding them in South Florida.

Drivers speeding in a school zone in Hollywood will get a warning, for now. But that warning will soon turn into a fine — and the program will be expanded to the rest of the city.

Thanks to a new state law, you can expect speed-detection cameras in some school zones across South Florida. Hollywood recently installed a camera: The city’s first one went live Wednesday outside Ben Gamla Charter School on Hollywood Boulevard. And there are many other cities that expect to add the cameras, too.

The effort comes a year since the state allowed cities and counties to use technology to target drivers who whizz through school zones.

For now, Hollywood’s program is only in the 30-day warning phase, which means no one will receive the $100 violation, at least not yet. City officials said their school zone safety program will ultimately include 33 public, private, and charter schools.

Mayor Josh Levy said this is about public safety.

“It’s not a ‘gotcha’ situation,” he said. “Once people understand there is strict enforcement, our expectation is they won’t speed again in front of these schools. The goal here is to reduce the speeding and not necessarily have a bunch of fines.”

Hollywood is just one of the cities with plans to install school speeding cameras:

— Fort Lauderdale is currently seeking a vendor for a camera program, in an application window that closes Sept. 6.

— Davie has a contract with the company Verra Mobility, and the cameras are now in the permitting stages. The company said in a statement that there will be more than 35 school speed safety camera enforcement locations. Verra Mobility is also in various stages of implementation with Osceola County and the cities of Doral and Ocoee for cameras, according to a spokeswoman.

— In June, the city of Plantation signed off on the cameras. “We are currently in the process of implementing the cameras in the school zones that experience high numbers of drivers speeding 11 miles or more per hour during the time periods outlined for enforcement in the State statutes,” said Laura Karpaviciute, assistant city administrator. “The city is planning a robust communication campaign to alert the public of the upcoming enforcement once we know the go-live date of these systems.”

— Deerfield Beach is planning to install cameras in all seven public school zones by the end of October.

— Tamarac “is in the early stages of planning” for obtaining and installing the cameras.

More cities still have to make a decision:

— Boynton Beach is still reviewing its options, but anticipates that, similar to Hollywood, there will be a warning period first.

— The Margate City “Commission wants to see how the cameras are implemented in other cities before they make a decision,” said City Manager Cale Curtis.

— Delray Beach police last year told the South Florida Sun Sentinel they would consider it as an option. The city manager recently said there’s no school-zone cameras installed in the city, saying that it’s “to be determined.”

— Parkland has approved the cameras in theory, but hasn’t decided whether to actually do it. “Implementation will be decided in the future,” said city spokesman Todd DeAngelis.

The issue is still under consideration in Hallandale Beach, Lauderhill, North Lauderdale and Pompano Beach.

In July 2023, Florida’s Legislature authorized the use of speed cameras in school zones, as well as the installation of cameras on school buses as an effort to increase safety for students exiting and entering school buses.

In the first few weeks of this school year, more than 11,500 drivers in Miami-Dade County have received $225 citations who didn’t stop for school buses, The Miami Herald reported.

There are now 950 school buses across the county equipped with cameras designed to catch drivers who illegally pass buses.

BusPatrol is the private company managing the buses and the high-resolution artificial intelligence technology that is triggered when the school bus sign is deployed. The technology photographs the license plates of cars that fail to stop.

In addition to Miami-Dade, the technology is also on nearly 1,000 school buses in Hillsborough County, according to a BusPatrol spokesperson Friday.

Cameras on school buses could ultimately come to Broward, too.

“The District is currently working on an agreement with a vendor,” said Broward schools spokeswoman Cathleen Brennan. There is no date yet for it to go into effect.

Lisa J. Huriash can be reached at lhuriash@sunsentinel.com . Follow on X, formerly Twitter, @LisaHuriash