LILBURN — The Lilburn Police Department has started a 30 day warning period to help drivers adjust to Automated Enforcement of School Zones.
The initial school zone cameras are installed at Arcado Elementary School on Arcado Road. During the warning period, drivers will be mailed warning notices. New signage alerting drivers of the stepped up enforcement have already been installed.
The program was instituted after a nationwide spike in pedestrian fatalities over the past decade in which Georgia became one of the 5 deadliest states for pedestrians, with the seventh highest fatality rate. Automated Enforcement is endorsed as a safety tool by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association, AAA, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the National Safety Council.
Lilburn Police Chief Bruce Hedley said he hopes the cameras will reverse dangerous safety trends and encourage drivers to slow down.
“Safety is a priority and the goal is that the Automated Enforcement will encourage drivers to slow down and obey the speed limit,” said Hedley. “Very minimal reductions in speed make the roads a lot safer, especially for children.”
The Lilburn program will target the most egregious speeders exceeding more than fifteen miles per hour over the posted speed limit in school zones. The cameras will operate from one hour before school until one hour after school, only on school days.
A sworn officer reviews and approves each citation before it is issued. A 30 day warning period is in effect before any citations are issued.
The new program will be fully operational and issuing real citations on February 13, 2020. Violations will cost $75 for the first offense and $125 for any subsequent offenses. Citations issued are a civil fine. Therefore, no points will be reported to the Department of Driver Services and the driver’s insurance company will not be notified.
House Bill 978 was passed in 2018, which allowed automated traffic enforcement in school zones. In July 2019, Lilburn City Council approved an agreement with RedSpeed USA for the installation of school zone speed cameras. Cameras will also be installed at Trickum Middle School on Killian Hill Road in the near future.
