TAMPA, Fla. — Drivers who speed through school zones in Tampa may soon have to cough up some cash.
City leaders are calling it an “unacceptable hazard,” and they’re looking into installing speed detection cameras in several school zones around the city.
On Thursday, Tampa City Council passed the first reading for an ordinance that would install speed detection cameras in 13 school zones identified as having “heightened safety risk."
“This is something that will improve public safety that, I believe, will save lives,” Councilman Luis Viera said at the meeting.
Mobility officials say the cameras detect drivers speeding, and fines of $100 would be issued to folks going 10 miles per hour, or more, above the posted speed limit when the zones are active.
“It’s definitely needed,” said Rene Panko, owner of Ladies of the Sea restaurant in Tampa. “I literally go under the speed zone because those kids are unpredictable, they may run out at any time.”
At the meeting, Councilman Alan Clendenin voted against the ordinance, voicing concerns about the technology.
“We have the capability of policing problematic school zones now through traditional methods of law enforcement,” he said. “The installation of cameras, I think, is wrong for our community. It’s just something I’m fundamentally against.”
The ordinance is set to have another reading at a meeting on January 11.