KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WOKI / WVLT) — The Knoxville Police Department is rolling out dozens of speed enforcement cameras in school zones across the city in an effort to improve safety for students, parents and pedestrians.
KPD announced that 71 speed cameras are being activated in 39 school zones throughout Knoxville. Officials say the program is designed to address ongoing speeding problems in areas where children are most at risk.
“We’re talking about a very vulnerable population of school kids,” KPD spokesman Scott Erland said. “You have a lot of pedestrians in those areas, whether it’s families walking their kids to school, picking their kids up from school.”
School zone speed limits vary between 15 and 20 miles per hour depending on the location. According to KPD, officers routinely observe drivers traveling significantly above those limits and driving carelessly while children are present.
Police emphasized that the cameras are not intended to target drivers traveling just a few miles per hour over the limit.
“We’re looking at people who are egregious violators of the speed zone,” Erland said.
The department says the cameras differ from Flock Safety cameras and do not function as license plate readers or general surveillance systems.
“These cameras do not have any license plate reader capabilities,” Erland said. “They don’t function as surveillance cameras or security cameras. These solely function for speed enforcement.”
According to KPD, the cameras only collect information when a qualifying speeding violation is detected.
Beginning Nov. 16 and continuing through winter break, drivers captured speeding by the cameras will receive warning notices by mail. Once students return to class in January, motorists caught violating school zone speed limits will receive $50 civil citations.
The citations do not add points to a driver’s license.
Many parents support the program, saying additional enforcement is needed because officers cannot be present at every school every day.
KPD said revenue generated by the citations will be directed toward safety improvements in school zones and on city streets.
Officials hope the added enforcement will encourage drivers to slow down and help reduce the risk of crashes involving children near schools.
