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Two yellow lights blink beside a "children crossing" sign, and a prominent "15 Limit Speed" is painted on the road near Berwyn Heights Elementary, but that doesn't stop the speeders, who "scare the children," said Principal Karen Singer.
The Berwyn Heights Town Council, who voted on the issue Wednesday, wants to put a stop to that by placing speed cameras near the school.
A new state law went into effect Oct. 1 allowing municipalities and counties the authority to install speed cameras within a half-mile of schools. That means the cameras could potentially be placed on nearly any street in the town, because the town spans .65 mile. However, the council will be focusing primarily on Pontiac and Quebec streets, which border Berwyn Heights Elementary and Edmonston Road and Greenbelt Road, which are near Greenbelt Middle School.
"You have to have not just enough volume, but you need to have consistent volume throughout the day. There probably aren't many places in town that we can actually put them," Mayor Cheye Calvo said at the Oct. 29 four cities meeting. The meeting brought together council members from Berwyn Heights, Greenbelt, College Park and New Carrollton. One of the big issues was speed cameras, which New Carrollton installed Oct. 1.
In an effort to gain feedback from the community, the council held several forums for residents to speak for or against having cameras in the town, and Calvo said that the majority of residents, "two to one," were in favor of the cameras, Calvo said.
"As long as they're used as a safety device and not a revenue enhancement tool, and are clearly marked and not hidden . . . then I don't have a problem with it," said Berwyn Heights resident Karen Reznek.
The cameras the town would get likely would be portable and would not cost the town any money—those who get caught speeding would be footing the bill.
If speed cameras are installed, motorists driving more than 12 miles above the posted speed limit in designated areas can receive fines up to $40. A portion of each ticket would pay for the cameras. The town is only allowed to collect 10 percent of the total profit from ticketing, which can only be used for public safety.
The Berwyn Heights Town Council voted on speed cameras at the town meeting at Wednesday's town meeting. For results of the vote, visit www.gazette.net/greenbelt/news