The Legislature granted Minneapolis permission to set up cameras to catch speeders, and one thing is certain: The pilot lasting four years will begin as soon as August.
Minneapolis wants drivers to slow down, and hopes traffic cameras will help
Cameras to help catch speeders could be operating in five locations when a pilot begins in August.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
February 24, 2025 at 11:00AM
Beyond that, there are “lots of details to work through” before automated traffic enforcement comes to the state’s largest city, said Ethan Fawley, coordinator of the city’s Vision Zero program, which has a goal of eliminating traffic deaths and serious injuries on city streets by 2027.
Along with putting out a request for vendors to run the system — “we can’t do this work in-house,” Fawley said — current tasks include publicizing the program, collecting feedback and addressing citizens' questions and concerns.
“We know we need to improve safety with this pilot,” Fawley said. “We want to build trust with the community.”
Dialog will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Minneapolis Central Library and online at 6 p.m. Thursday.
Fawley said the pilot is necessary because “speeding is the No. 1 safety challenge in Minneapolis.” Last year, speeding was cited as a factor in 11 of the city’s 14 fatal crashes. The cameras are coming because “people say we need to do something.”
The pilot running through 2029 will begin with five cameras and could potentially expand to a network of 42. Where they will be stationed has yet to be decided, but guidelines provide some clues. 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.
Fawley said the city has looked at crash data for every intersection in the city over the past five years and identified 51 possible sites for cameras. The cameras will go only on city streets, not county roads like Lyndale Avenue or state roads like University Avenue that pass through Minneapolis.
The analysis found Whittier, a South Side neighborhood where 47% of households have incomes of $50,000 or less, had the highest concentration of streets meeting criteria for camera placement. The northeast and southwest parts of the city had the fewest, according to the city.
“That doesn’t mean three of the initial five cameras will go in Whittier,” Fawley said. “We will be spreading them around different parts of the city.”
The public can offer ideas for additional locations, Fawley said.
Traffic cameras are used in 29 states and the District of Columbia, and a 2023 MnDOT synthesis of research found they lead to reductions in deaths, injuries, crashes and speeds.
“They are a proven safety measure,” Fawley said.
The citywide speed limit in Minneapolis is 20 mph unless otherwise posted. Motorists captured on camera going more than 10 mph over the speed limit would get a letter for the first offense and a $40 citation for subsequent offenses. That would double to $80 for drivers caught going 20 mph or more over the speed limit. A traffic agent will have to verify all potential violations before citations are mailed.
Before cameras go live, Fawley said signs will be posted to alert drivers of a camera’s presence. Cameras will be allowed only to photograph back license plates, not people.
And officials hope the cameras will never even have to snap a picture.
“We want people to slow down,” Fawley said. “That is the goal of this program.”
The city anticipates adding cameras to catch drivers who run red lights in 2026.
Here’s how to keep track of and engage with the Minnesota Legislature during its 2025 session, which runs until late May.
