Speed cameras to be installed at Pine Hills Elementary School

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)-- Cameras will soon be monitoring cars' speed at Pine Hills Elementary School. On Thursday, the district announced work was underway to install these speed cameras at the North Allen Street building.

The city said the speed cameras are intended to enforce the city's 20 miles per hour speed limit in school zones. Once installed and on, the camera will operate in a "warning mode" for 30 days, in which drivers who drive over that 20-mph limit will receive mailed warnings.

After 30 days, if drivers continue to speed in the school zone, they will be mailed a $50 violation per offense. According to the district, this is expected to begin in early January.

Speed cameras are currently in eight areas across the city as part of a city-wide effort to keep school zones safe. Once the complete project is finished, the city will have speed cameras in 20 school zones throughout Albany.

Cameras are currently in place at Eagle Point Elementary School on Western Avenue, Albany High School on Washington Avenue, Stephen and Harriet Myers Middle School, Albany School of Humanities on Whitehall Road, William S. Hackett Middle School and Thomas O'Brien Academy of Science and Technology on Delaware Avenue. 

"We are grateful to Mayor (Kathy) Sheehan for her leadership in bringing these important new traffic safety measures to our school communities," Superintendent Joseph Hochreiter said. "This will bring significant and much-needed safety improvements for our students, families, faculty and staff."

In the first 11 days over 13,000 drivers had been ticketed. Beginning January 1, the city-wide speed limit outside school zones will also drop to 25 mph.