Tampa Approves School Zone Cameras

- The 6-1 approval came after Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw issued a memo assuring council members that state law and city code prohibit the camera vendor, RedSpeed Florida, from sharing data with any other vendor, including Flock Safety. This addressed concerns raised by members like Lynn Hurtak, who ultimately voted in favor citing these "safeguards," while Bill Carlson cast the lone dissenting vote. - This is the city's second attempt at implementing school zone cameras; a contract with a previous vendor, American Traffic Solutions (d/b/a Verra Mobility), was approved in August 2024 but mutually terminated in December 2025. The new agreement with RedSpeed is a "piggyback" onto an existing contract with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office. - The program is violator-funded and comes at no cost to the city. For each $100 fine issued for driving 11 mph or more over the school zone speed limit, Tampa will receive $39. The violations are treated as civil penalties and do not result in points on a driver's record. - The enabling legislation, Florida House Bill 657, was signed by Governor Ron DeSantis in 2023, authorizing the use of speed detection systems in school zones for the first time. Enforcement is permitted to begin 30 minutes before a school's breakfast program starts and end 30 minutes after the school day concludes. - The rollout is planned for the 2025-2026 school year, starting with a 30-day public awareness campaign during which only warnings will be issued. An initial list of schools was selected based on a safety study considering crash data and traffic patterns. - While a RedSpeed representative claimed the cameras lead to a 90% reduction in speeding, the adjacent Hillsborough County "Operation Safe Passage" program provides local context. In its first year, it issued 5,775 violations, but after expanding enforcement hours, that number jumped to over 30,000 in a five-week period. - Concerns over the vendor choice exist, as RedSpeed's proposal to the county ranked third behind two other companies. Additionally, other Florida municipalities have reported issues with RedSpeed, including improper camera installation in Manatee County and a "jurisdictional coding error" that led to voiding over 200 tickets in Palm Bay.