These five intersections will be the first in Minneapolis with cameras to catch speeders

Minneapolis city officials on Tuesday revealed where the first five cameras that will be used as part of a pilot program to cite speeding drivers will be placed.

The locations — one each in the north, northeast, south and southwest parts of the city and downtown Minneapolis — all have 8% to 10% of drivers going more than 10 mph over the speed limit and a significant number of injury crashes, said Ethan Fawley, coordinator of the city’s Vision Zero program.

“We don’t have any gotcha locations,” Fawley said Tuesday during a news conference at the city’s Public Service Building. “We know we have a reckless speeding challenge in Minneapolis. That is reality. We need to be able to reduce speeding at those locations.”

The cameras will be turned on sometime in September.

The locations are:

A few of the initial locations may be moved down the road. “We are trying things,” Fawley said of the pilot program.

Up to 11 more “high priority” intersections could be outfitted with cameras in 2026 with up to 42 locations operating by the time the pilot ends in 2029, Fawley said.

Minneapolis joins Mendota Heights as two cities that won approval from the Legislature to install speed cameras and issue tickets. MnDOT also was granted authority to run a speed pilot in work zones, although infractions would only result in a warning.

In Minneapolis, all drivers will be issued warnings during the first month. After that, sometime in October, drivers detected going 10 mph or faster over the speed limit will be issued a warning for their first violation. A second offense will result in a $40 fine, which doubles to $80 for motorists going more than 20 mph over the speed limit.

In lieu of paying a fine on a first offense, a driver may take a free state-developed driving course online, said Ahmed Adow, director of parking management and traffic control for the city.

Drivers also have the ability to contest a ticket. They will receive a link to a video showing the alleged violation with any citation, which will be sent by mail.

The city’s Vision Zero resolution calls for an end to serious injury and fatal crashes by 2027. In the period covering 2022 through 2024, 43 people were killed in crashes attributed to “clear speeding,” 19 in crashes involving red-light running and 17 in crashes that involved both, according to city crash data.

“All these people should be alive,” Fawley said. “It is extra tragic that most of these people killed were not speeding or running red lights themselves. They were killed by somebody speeding or running a red light.”

The cameras are meant to educate people and change behavior, Adow said.

Last week, the Minneapolis City Council approved a $12 million contract with NovoaGlobal to operate the system. The council believed revenue from tickets ideally would cover the costs, meaning an average of 75,000 tickets would need to be generated each year.

“We hope it’s not that much,” Fawley said. “That would give the outcome we want, safer streets.”

Studies show that speeding declines by as much as 97% when cameras are present, Fawley said

At the outset, cameras will only be active on city-owned streets, even if those that intersect with a road operated by the county or state. In the future, with cooperation, cameras could be added on streets such as Lyndale Avenue or University Avenue, and not just on city streets crossing them, Fawley said.

Next year, the system could also be expanded to capture drivers who run red lights, officials said.

Fawley said more than 80% of people who offered feedback supported camera implementation.

“Speeding is the city’s No. 1 traffic concern,” he said. Residents want the city to make streets safer, “and this pilot is helping to do that.”