Phoenix drivers who have been ignoring the city’s new speed cameras are about to face real consequences. The city’s Photo Safety Program begins issuing actual citations Wednesday, ending a 30-day warning period that revealed just how routinely drivers have been exceeding safe speeds on city roads.
During the grace period alone, the cameras logged more than 70,000 speeding violations — a number city officials called alarming. The devices are positioned in corridors with documented histories of speed-related crashes, with nine cameras installed at fixed locations and eight additional units rotating through school zones during the school year.
Phoenix Police Commander Nicholas Diponzio said the volume of violations captured before a single ticket was issued makes the case for the program’s necessity. Speed is consistently one of the leading factors in the city’s most severe and fatal crashes, and the warning period data suggests the problem is widespread.
The program is structured as cost-recovery rather than a revenue generator for the city. Any net proceeds beyond operating costs will be directed toward Phoenix’s Vision Zero initiative — the city’s long-term plan to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries entirely.
A map showing the locations of all active cameras is available on the city’s website.
