By Vince Lennon
Trenton motorists who have been pushing their luck and speeding through the new camera monitoring system outside Dade County High School lately, your days of no potential penalty are numbered, as of Wednesday.
At Tuesday night’s City Commission meeting, Trenton Police Chief Steve Beaudoin stated “tickets and citations will now be issued” after nearly a month of warnings for violators caught on camera exceeding the speed limit during posted school times at the Highway 136 and Tradition Lane.
Chief Beaudoin was responding on topic to the lone question offered during the public participation forum, with a local reporter’s inquiry on the cameras status, noting community feedback.
Beaudoin said motorists observed speeding during the posted times for school arrivals and dismissal will now be cited and face fines. During those day parts, the flashing alert and posted speed limit is 35 mph.
School systems across Georgia are embracing photo enforced speed limits in school zones in the hopes of improving student safety.
But many are asking whether the cameras can ticket drivers speeding outside the posted school hours?
Georgia Code § 40-14-18 outlines how authorities can use speed cameras in school zones. The law allows camera enforcement “on a school day during the time in which instructional classes are taking place and one hour before such classes are scheduled to begin and for one hour after such classes have concluded.”
The driver must be going at least 10 miles over the speed limit to be cited.
In other Trenton city council action, commissioners approved the purchase of four new AED defibrillators to be outfitted in city police vehicles.
Nearly half of the $12,000 cost will be supplemented by two safety grants the city secured through the Georgia Municipal Association.
