Speed Cameras In Small CT Town Result In $50,000 In Fines In One Month, Officials Say

WASHINGTON, CT — As communities across Connecticut continue to consider installing speed cameras on local and state roads, one town has already seen huge results as a result of them.

According to a town official, thousands of dollars worth of fines have already been issued in town due to speed cameras in place on one state and two local roads.

Speed Cameras in Washington

First Selectman Jim Brinton confirmed Thursday afternoon the town of Washington, the first community in Connecticut approved to use speed cameras to enforce local traffic laws, has three cameras set up in town.

Automated traffic enforcement safety devices can be installed on state roads if approved by the Connecticut Department of Transportation, but not on highways, according to CTDOT.

According to Brinton, the cameras were installed "roughly a couple of months ago" on Route 109, a state road, and Old Litchfield and Baldwin Hill roads, which are both local.

During that period of time, there was a 30-day grace period where no citations were issued to drivers.

That soon changed, resulting in just over $50,000 worth of fines being issued to drivers in Washington over the course of about a month as a result of the cameras, according to Brinton.

"I'm not sure how many fines have been paid," Brinton said to Patch, "but I know in the month or so that they've been active there's been more than $50,000 worth of fines."

Brinton also noted the town saw about $21,000 in citations issued over the course of less than two weeks alone due to the cameras.

How Do Speed Cameras Work?

Brinton briefly explained how the automated cameras work.

"When a car comes and it's going 10 miles an hour or more than the speed limit, that's what activates the camera," Brinton said, "and that's what takes the picture of the license plate of the car."

A first fine is $50, while subsequent fines cost $75, Brinton said.

According to the first selectman, the highest speeding amount tracked by one of the cameras in town thus far was 83 mph on Old Litchfield Road, a 30 mph zone.

He also noted drivers cited thus far have been about an even mix of residents and drivers from outside of Washington, the total population of which is around 3,800.

While there have not been many repeat offenders, there are some drivers who have racked up between three and five violations, Brinton said.

"A Huge Issue"

While he acknowledged speeding appears to be an issue "all over Connecticut," Brinton said it has become a major issue in his town.

"In Washington alone, it's the number one volume of calls my office receives, which means it's a huge issue," Brinton said. "Our goal, and it really has nothing to do with revenue generated from these violations, our goal is to see the number of tickets and citations drop as the weeks and months wear on and people get the message that they need to slow down."

According to Brinton, there are signs up warning drivers in the area of each speed camera in town.

He also acknowledged the number of speeding violations in town did not appear to be trending downward yet but confirmed the goal of this type of speed enforcement was to remind drivers to slow down and obey the speed limit in these areas, which would hopefully then translate to every road in town.

Despite this, Brinton said there are currently no plans to install more speed cameras in town.

"That's not a goal of ours," Brinton said. "We don't want to have more than three of these devices [in town], and we can move these around, so we will apply...you have to be permitted by the state DOT, and what we will do is apply for a permit for three different roads...a lot is determined by if we see a sharp decrease in the number of citations issued."

Speed Cameras In Connecticut

While Washington is the first community in Connecticut to utilize speed cameras to enforce local traffic laws, it is not the only one.

On Monday, the Middletown Police Department announced speed enforcement cameras were now active along both the eastbound and westbound lanes of Washington Street, west of Camp Street.

Other communities in Connecticut are already having deep discussions about installing the cameras in their towns and cities.

Speed cameras are expected to be installed in up to 10 school zones in Greenwich after the Board of Selectmen held a public hearing and granted approval to police back in April.

In Stratford, the town is proposing speed cameras in a number of locations throughout the community and held a public hearing about it in March.

Red light and speed cameras were also recently under consideration in Fairfield, as well as Milford and even in West Hartford.

In Stamford, officials recently identified initial locations for speed cameras in the city, which could be in place as early as summer 2025. The city's Board of Representatives voted in May to approve a public hearing on the proposal.

Meanwhile, the Board of Selectmen in Canton voted 4-1 to kill a proposed ordinance allowing the devices in town by voting against sending the ordinance to a necessary public hearing in March.

According to a CTDOT spokesperson, the department reviews and approves plans for the cameras, however it is then up to local municipalities to install and maintain them.

Initial reports to the department are due 18 months after the cameras are first installed, and annual reports are due thereafter, so they do not currently have official data for the devices, the spokesperson noted.

"Anecdotally, what we are seeing in news coverage confirms what we know is happening on roadways around Connecticut," the spokesperson said in an email to Patch. "People are driving way too fast and it's putting people in danger. We remain optimistic that this technology [will] change driver behavior and create safer communities."