In November, I wrote an article about how the city of Albany was trying to reduce speeding in school speed zones by using cameras. That article stated that there were 12,895 speeding tickets issued to registered owners of vehicles that were caught on camera speeding more than 10 mph over the posted speed limit in only four school speed zones over a 10-day period in October 2024.

Now, a follow-up article by Albany Times Union staff writer Steve Hughes provides more information on how the cameras are helping to reduce speeding around schools. The city began a five-year pilot program with automated traffic cameras near schools throughout the city in September 2024. The registered owner of a vehicle caught on camera exceeding the school zone speed limit by more than 10 mph receives a $50 ticket.

Through March 26 of this year, city school zone traffic cameras ticketed 88,816 people driving more than 30 mph through school zones. The highest speed recorded was 75 mph by a driver from Troy.

According to the Times Union article, Albany officials noted that drivers have adapted their behaviors since the cameras have appeared. Typically, a new camera location sees a spike in tickets as it comes online, followed by a decrease.

The numbers back up the claim. From March 1 to 26, the city issued 16,410 tickets, with 28 of 40 planned cameras operating. In the first three weeks of last October, the city issued more than 20,000 tickets for speeding in a school zone with just eight cameras operating.

The city takes a hard line on forgiving or canceling tickets. Even city employees in city vehicles must pay the fines if they speed in the school zones, with some exceptions, according to Kathy Sheehan, mayor of Albany. “I think that that helps with demonstrating this is truly about safety,” she said.

Two other initiatives contributing to the reduction in speeding include the installation of speed humps and the lowering of the speed limit on all city streets from 30 mph to 25 mph in January of this year.

Councilwoman Deborah Zamer, who sponsored the legislation to lower the city speed limit, said the combination of speed humps, which the city began installing in some neighborhoods in 2022, school zone traffic cameras and the 25-mph speed limit has made a big difference in the city.