PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — Another city in Hampton Roads will be adding school bus stop arm enforcement and red-light cameras.
Portsmouth City Council voted 6-0 on Tuesday night to allow the city to move forward with plans to install the traffic enforcement programs. Councilman De’Andre Barnes was not present.
It’s all in an effort to reduce speeding and get people to stop where they are supposed to.
“The problem is people are speeding at high rates … if you have ever witnessed a school zone, work zone or someone running a red light, they are usually going at a high rate of speed,” said Martin Plank, a representative from camera operator Alumint.
The traffic enforcement cameras won’t require any money from the city and will be 100% violator-funded, the company says.
The school stop arm enforcement would capture any car that passes a stopped school bus and issue a violation.
“If someone passes a school bus stop arm when that stop arm is out, it’s a $250 fine,” Plank said.
The fine is a civil penalty, which wouldn’t affect your license points or insurance rates. All citations will also have to be reviewed by a sworn law enforcement officer.
The traffic light cameras aim to make sure people stop when the light hits red. The city could install up to nine of them across intersections in Portsmouth under Virginia law.
“Our goal obviously, at a minimum, a 90 percent reduction of red-light runners,” Plank said.
This violation would be a $50 fine.
Another representative for Alumint, the company behind the cameras, told city council most of the violations come from rolling red lights.
“The majority of the violations when people generally come from people that fail to stop and look and turn,” he said.
What is the next step for the city?
According to the city manager’s report, Portsmouth Public Schools will work with the police department to find a way to implement the school bus video-monitoring systems. The public school system will receive the net revenue from the program.
For the red light cameras, there will be a decision on the exact intersections where these cameras will be installed. Then, a public outreach campaign will start.
The city manager’s report said the program is anticipated to start in February 2024. All the revenue from this program will go to the City of Portsmouth.