K St. Speed Cam Made More Than $8M

If a speed camera has busted you while you're cruising down K Street NW, you're certainly not alone.

Since October, the 10 busiest cameras in the city have raked in nearly $30 million, the Washington Post reports.

The cameras located on K Street at Washington Circle -- pointed at both east- and westbound traffic -- have yielded more than 60,000 tickets in that time, bringing in more than $8 million in revenue for the district, the Post reports.

D.C.'s top three cameras have issued $17 million in tickets during the last seven months. They're located at K Street, on southbound Interstate 295 near the Naval Research Lab in SE and in the 600 block of New York Avenue in NE.

Will drivers learn to slow down? One official told the Post that while the number of tickets issued may eventually decrease, she doesn't think the camera will put themselves out of business.

"Experience would say that drivers really like to speed; it's hard to persuade people not to speed," Anne T. McCartt, senior vice president for research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, told the Post.

While many complain that the speed cameras are merely a ploy for making money, city officials stand by the cameras' use as a safety tool. Advocates say the cameras and the fines that accompany a violation make drivers slow down.

However, the D.C. Council recently decreased fines levied by speed cameras in response to repeated complaints.

The new fines were set as follows:

• 11-15 mph over the speed limit: $92 (previously $100)
• 16-20 mph over: $100 (previously $150)
• 21-25 over: $150 (previously $200)

"I just paid, last year, about $1,400 worth of speed camera tickets, so I'm glad they're lowering the fines," Maryland resident Aaron Pointdexter told News4 earlier this year.

D.C. resident Michael Burke said he gets tickets from speed cameras "all the time."

"I'd like to think I financed a few parades in the city, but you know, if you speed, that's just one of the things that comes along with it," he said.

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• D.C. Council Overrides Mayor on Speed Limits