St. Cloud, Eustis other places to approve and use camera enforcement
Here’s notice from Osceola County: drive safely in school zones in 2025, or get a fine.
The county announced this week it will use technology to help the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office and the School District of Osceola County in regulating speeding in school zones to protect those students who go to class on foot or on a bicycle.
As part of the plan announced late Tuesday afternoon, high-tech speed-sensing cameras will be installed at 32 locations near Osceola County schools that officials have deemed “high risk”. Osceola County has contracted with technology firm Verra Mobility to implement the program and the cameras through March 31, 2029.
The first school zones to get the cameras are scheduled to be: Boggy Creek Elementary School and Parkway Middle School on Florida Parkway; Sunrise Elementary School and Horizon Middle School on Ham Brown Road; Koa Elementary and BridgePrep Academy of Osceola on Koa Street; Deerwood Elementary School on Marigold Avenue; Bellalago Academy, Liberty High and Mater Brighton Lakes Academy on Pleasant Hill Road; Reedy Creek Elementary School, Poinciana High and Mater Palms Academy on Poinciana Boulevard; and Narcoossee Middle and Elementary Schools on Narcoossee Road.
Any vehicle the camera system shows to be traveling 10 miles per hour over the speed limit during school hours will be mailed a violation notice. Warnings will begin on Jan. 7, 2025, while citations with a $100 fine will begin 30 days later on Feb. 6. A state statute went into effect July 1, 2023 allowing local governments to enforce school zone speeds limits through automated speed detection systems.
According to the plan’s documentation, a photograph is taken of the vehicle identified exceeding the school zone speed limit. A second photograph is taken to record the vehicle's license plate, recording the date, time, speed, and location of the infraction. The Osceola County Sheriff’s Office will review the incidents before issuing a citation, which will contain vehicle images and a close-up of the license plate. A Notice of Violation will be issued if the vehicle is found to be traveling more than 10 miles per hour over the school zone speed limit from 30 minutes before to 30 minutes after the start of a regularly-scheduled breakfast program, the start time and end time of a regularly-scheduled school day.
As agreed to in March, the county will pay $3,500 per month per camera system, unless the revenue generated by a camera is less than that amount.
The county noted that data Verra Mobility’s shared with them showed nearly 70% of drivers who received a citation in other jurisdictions that use the cameras and approved the program did no become repeat offenders, curing the speeding behavior near schools and in school zones.
This enforcement-by-cameras is already in place in other Florida cities like Eustis in Lake County. In August, the city of St. Cloud approved getting its own camera system after an in-depth traffic study adjacent to the schools on Michigan Avenue and Canoe Creek K-8, St. Cloud, Lakeview and Neptune Elementary, showed thousands of speeding violations captured during school zone hours. No start date has been determined for the use of its cameras, as a city spokesperson said it and its chosen company are still working the details of its contract.
“This relevant data shows and supports that the speeds in the school zone presents a heightened safety threat for our students,” St. Cloud Police Chief Doug Goerke told the City Council when it approved the camera system. “I’m hoping people will see (the flashing signs that the cameras are in use), and I’d be content not getting any money. I’m hoping people see the signs that detection systems are in use and they just slow down.”
“Implementing speed cameras in school zones has been proven to reduce crashes and pedestrian-related injuries,” County Commission Chair Viviana Janer said in a statement that announced the program for next month. “We all have a role to play in keeping our children safe, especially as they go to and from school. Working together as a community we can help make our roads safer.”
For more information on Osceola County’s traffic safety program, visit https://www.osceola.org/Community/Safety-Initiatives/School-Zone-Safety-Program.
