ALACHUA COUNTY, FL (352today.com) – Alachua County’s Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) unanimously passed a motion to phase speed detection systems into school zones.

The ordinance related to the Enforcement of School Zone Speed Limits was presented at a special meeting on Tuesday morning by Alison Moss, the county’s Transportation Planning Manager, alongside Sheriff Emery Gainey and Lieutenant Billy Beck of the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO).

The ordinance’s passing will enforce speed limits through a speed detection system. The process involves vendors contracted through the sheriff’s department to set up detection systems in school zones. When the system catches a driver suspected of speeding, the video will be sent to the sheriff’s office for confirmation.

According to Moss, drivers caught speeding more than 11 MPH over the speed limit will receive a $100 fine through email that can be paid online or via check. The money will reportedly be split up:

  • $20 to the state’s Department of Revenue (DOR) General Revenue Fund
  • $3 to DOR Department of Law Enforcement Criminal Justice Standards and Training Trust Fund
  • $60 County Program which will cover vendor, sheriff administration, and public safety initiatives
  • $5 School Crossing Guard Recruitment and Retention Program

ACSO says they will roll out the systems starting Spring 2025 using a “phased approach.” Sheriff Gainey states the department will collect data and return it to the board after six months for further deliberation on a long-term stay.

The department proposes to implement the speed detection systems in two to four school zones to start. They say the schools selected will be based on safety, traffic, and demographic data.

This graphic highlights schools that experience a high volume of speeders traveling over 10 miles above the speed limit. Courtesy: Alachua County
The graphic shows SW 75th street, which runs parallel to Kimball Wiles Elementary School. ACSO clocked 2,251 speeding violations on the road alone. Courtesy: Alachua County

The BOCC unanimously favored phasing the system school-by-school to examine its reception. Commissioner Ken Cornell initially expressed concerns that the system would focus more on revenue generation than creating a change in speeding behavior. However, the commissioner remained adamant that the system would enforce safety, saying “There is nothing, in my mind, more important than the safety of kids in this county.”

BOCC Chair Mary Alford says the system seems “so much cheaper” than having a deputy on patrol before adding, “I drove through three school zones this morning and there were people speeding through every one of them.”

The county will now look to advertise this ordinance with the help of the ACSO.