Traffic Safety Cameras Effective in Work Zones

SNOQUALMIE PASS – A safety project on Snoqualmie Pass has ended with the removal of automated speed-enforcement cameras in the construction zone. Using the mobile camera proved effective at slowing  drivers speeding through the work zone.

“We were encouraged to see more drivers complying with the speed limit,” said John Nisbet, Washington State Department of Transportation traffic operations director. “This was never about citations; it was about making the work zone safer for roadway workers and drivers.”

While the automated speed enforcement safety project is coming to an end, the Washington State Patrol will continue its traditional traffic law enforcement efforts using high-visibility patrols on both sides of the pass.

“With winter weather fast approaching, it’s all the more important to slow down and maintain safe following distances,” said Capt. Wes Rethwill of WSP’s Field Operations Bureau. “As always, we’ll have troopers in the area even if the automated cameras are no longer in place.”

The automated cameras will move to another construction zone in the future. WSDOT is considering several sites and will notify drivers and the media about upcoming locations.

The Washington State Legislature directed WSDOT to use the automated speed-enforcement cameras in active construction zones as part of a pilot program ending June 2013.

The automated speed-enforcement camera is part of WSDOT’s Give ’em A Brake program, which encourages drivers to slow down in work zones. Encouraging drivers to slow down not only protects workers, it protects the motoring public. Nationally, more than 90 percent of work zone-related injuries involve drivers and their passengers.