KINGSLAND, Ga. – A Georgia lawmaker wants to get rid of speed detection cameras in school zones.
The cameras take photos of speeding cars and send tickets to the drivers in the mail.
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The bill went through a second house reading this week.
It was sponsored by State Rep. Dale Washburn.
News4JAX spoke with Chonda Foster about the topic.
Foster is constantly on the road driving around to different parts of the state to make deliveries for her business, Customized Hustle.
This means she’s driven through lots of school zones and past a few speed-detection cameras.
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“I got a letter saying that I got a ticket, that I had to pay in a certain amount of days, if I didn’t I’d be penalized,” Foster said. “So of course I went ahead and paid it.”
Foster received an $80 ticket for speeding in the Jonesboro school zone.
However, she doesn’t feel like the cameras were accurate and says that money could’ve been better spent on her business.
“I think that they’re not very reliable,” Foster said.
Although she said they’re not very reliable, she’s on the fence about whether the cameras should be removed.
But one person who isn’t, Capt. Dan Falcitelli of the Kingsland Police Department.
He spoke with News4JAX over the phone and said he believes the cameras shouldn’t be removed.
“We’ve had multiple complaints from the community about speeding motorists through our school zone and this is our solution to the problem and right now it’s working,” Falcitelli said in a statement.
MORE | Kingsland Police Department working to reduce speeding in school zones
In September, the Kingsland police department installed speed cameras at four schools in Kingsland.
He said they did this because, during the 2023-2024 school year, two buses were hit by cars. Two kids were also hit near Lakes Boulevard, and a child was hit while riding a bicycle near the high school.
The captain said since the installation of the cameras, and people started receiving citations for speeding, those crashes have significantly reduced.
And while Georgia is debating getting rid of the cameras, Neptune Beach is joining the list of Florida cities targeting school zone speeders.
And Foster said though she is on the fence about getting rid of these she does think they have helped reduce speeding in certain school zones.
But thinks something else can help reduce speeding, instead of tickets.
News4JAX did reach out to Rep. Washburn for comment on this story. We’re still waiting to hear back