ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – Albuquerque is now one step closer to the return of speed cameras. Monday afternoon, the Speed Camera Ordinance passed unanimously through a committee and it appears there is strong support for the cameras.
The bipartisan ordinance is sponsored by four city councilors, three of whom sat on Monday afternoon’s Finance and Government Operations Committee. So, this passing doesn’t come as a surprise but the councilors say it is important citing that in 2019, 97 people were killed in crashes, the highest number in more than a decade.
The councilors say installing speed cameras similar to the Rio Rancho speed vans would result in more consistent and unbiased enforcement of traffic laws. They say Albuquerque police have other, more violent or serious crime-fighting priorities and the cameras will conserve police resources.
This is also not designed to be a moneymaker for the city or be used as a tool to over police certain communities. Cameras would go in intersections with high crash rates. “Having these automated speed devices is a great tool because they can be moved to different locations about the city based on this data that we collect. So it’s a two-point program. You have the data collected for one and for the other you just have public complaints,” said one councilor in the meeting.
If you do get caught by a speed camera in the future, the registered owner of the vehicle would get a $100 fine in the mail. Some argue that $100 isn’t enough for repeat speeders but the city is limited to that amount due to a state statute.
If the city is allowed to put cameras on state roads, people indicated they strongly support putting them along major thoroughfares like Coors, Paseo del Norte and Tramway which all have a high number of crashes.
