Speeders, beware: Traffic cameras coming soon to Minneapolis

The Minneapolis City Council on Thursday approved a $12 million contract for NovoaGlobal to set up a camera system to ticket speeders, and it could be expanded in future years to tag drivers who run red lights.

The action appears to be the last step needed to launch a pilot after Minneapolis won legislative approval to bring automated traffic enforcement to the state’s largest city. Cameras could be up and running as soon as August.

At the outset, cameras will be set up at five locations in Minneapolis and could grow to as many as 42 by the time the pilot is set to expire in 2029. The contract allows the city to extend the deal with NovoaGlobal.

The city has yet to identify where the first and subsequent cameras will be placed, but 51 sites have been identified as possible locations based on crash data.

Parameters spell out that cameras must be within 2,000 feet of a school, spread throughout the city and placed on streets identified as having a “traffic safety concern,” city documents state.

Cameras will be placed only on streets under the jurisdiction of Minneapolis, not on county roads such as Lyndale Avenue or state roads such as University Avenue that pass through the city.

Speeding has been identified as the leading traffic safety challenge in Minneapolis. Last year, speeding was cited as a factor in 11 of 14 fatal crashes in Minneapolis, Ethan Fawley, coordinator of the city’s Vision Zero program, told the Star Tribune in February.

Vision Zero is the city’s program with a goal of eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2027.

The citywide speed limit in Minneapolis is 20 mph unless otherwise posted. Cameras that detect a violation will snap a photo of the back license plate of an offending vehicle and generate a citation. A traffic agent will verify the violation before a ticket is mailed to the vehicle owner. The owner can contest the citation.

The first offense will trigger a warning. Subsequent infractions will come with a $40 fine, which can double to $80 if a driver is caught traveling 20 mph or more above the speed limit. Drivers can take a free traffic safety class instead of paying a fine for their first ticket.

Infractions will not go on a motorist’s driving record.

Studies have shown that the presence of cameras has a positive effect in decreasing crashes. The Cochrane Library, an international organization that reviews health care interventions, looked at more than 30 studies involving speed cameras.

Results showed “speed cameras are a worthwhile intervention for reducing the number of road traffic injuries and deaths,” the organization said.

One study from the Federal Highway Administration found cameras can reduce crashes on principal urban streets by up to 54%.

When it comes online, Minneapolis will join more than 300 other U.S. cities that have traffic safety cameras, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The pilot comes after the city tried cameras in the 2000s, but the initiative known as “Photo Cop” was deemed to violate state law, and cameras were turned off.

Minneapolis’ program could be expanded to cite drivers who run red lights starting in 2026.