ROANOKE, Va. – Changes could be coming to how you get tickets on the interstate. A camera would capture how fast you are going and take a snapshot. Then, State Police would review the footage and issue you a ticket.
It would only be a monetary fine right now in Virginia, and it can’t be used against you for your driving record.
It’s called automated speed enforcement.
The Virginia Department of Transportation says it’s similar to red light cameras that catch people running red lights.
“Speeding has become even more prevalent for whatever reason as a result of COVID during that COVID period. So, we really want to try to control speeding. VDOT is not an enforcement agency. So it’s not our responsibility or our ability to do that. We really rely on state police and local police,” said Dave Covington, VDOT’s I-81 program delivery director.
VDOT plans to run a pilot in Salem once they get the new technology.
This is all possible since Virginia legislation passed in 2020 that allowed the use of these systems near schools and highway work zones.
As we’ve reported, Altavista Police installed cameras in school zones to catch speeders a year ago, in June 2022. In the first two weeks, police caught 476 incidents and were mailing $100 fines.
At the time, Chief Tommy Merricks told 10 News they were the first Virginia school district to have these cameras and noted the speed limit is 25 miles per hour when the yellow lights are flashing in school zones.
This is part of a 10 News special report on Interstate 81. Crashes, safety concerns and a traffic nightmare.
“I know people personally that refuse to drive on I-81,” said someone who works for the Virginia Department of Transportation.
There’s a multibillion dollar plan to fix I-81 but where does it stand? 10 News is taking your concerns straight to VDOT.
10 News is working for answers, Wednesday at 7 pm.