Palm Bay’s school zone speed cameras allegedly violating state law: FOX 35 Investigates
School zone speed cameras allegedly violating state law
FOX 35 investigated school zone speed cameras in Palm Bay and found several cameras installed too close to the road, violating Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) rules. The city?s speeding camera program has faced ongoing issues since 2024, prompting a suspension by Palm Bay police. FOX 35 measured camera placements at multiple schools, identifying violations at 10 locations, while a few schools had cameras correctly installed according to state guidelines. Following the findings, the city ordered RedSpeed, the camera contractor, to investigate the improper installations.
PALM BAY, Fla. - FOX 35 uncovered several speeding cameras at Palm Bay schools that are breaking rules established by the state. Here's what we found.
What we know:
FOX 35 has been covering concerns about the school zone speeding cameras for months. Palm Bay Police suspended the program over persistent problems and overall mistakes with citations since 2024. As we reported on the cameras, we started reading the law that allows the cameras to be installed across the state.
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) lists specific rules on installation based on roadways that have gutters and those that don’t.
According to FDOT, "Any approved SDS shall be installed in accordance with the FDOT SDS Placement and Installation Specifications." This means city, county and state roads all have to follow the FDOT rules and regulations.
The state specifies how close to the road the cameras can go based on those rules.
For roads with curbs and gutters, FDOT says "placement shall be located no closer than 4 feet from the face of the curb."
For roads without, FDOT says "placement shall be located no closer than 12 feet from the traveled way."
For many days, we took a tape measurer out to each school zone and checked if the road had a curb or didn’t and where the camera was installed.
We recorded several violations and sent our findings to the city of Palm Bay and the police department.
What we found
Dig deeper:
These 10 schools had one or multiple cameras installed too close to the road:
- Discovery Elementary
- Jupiter Elementary
- Lockmar Elementary
- Pineapple Cove Classical Academy at Lockmar
- Riviera Elementary
- Palm Bay Elementary
- Southwest Middle
- John F. Turner Elementary
- Odyssey Charter Jr/Sr
- Royal Palm Charter
These schools had cameras installed that complied with state law:
- Christa McAuliffe Elementary
- Palm Bay Academy Middle
- Columbia Elementary
- Westside Elementary
After we shared our findings with both RedSpeed and the city of Palm Bay, officials are ordering an investigation into how the cameras were put up incorrectly.
What we don't know:
The exact financial impact of the improperly installed cameras is unclear, including how many citations may be invalidated. It remains uncertain what disciplinary or corrective actions will be taken against RedSpeed or city officials responsible for oversight. The timeline for completing RedSpeed’s investigation and the city’s plan to fully exit the contract are also unspecified.
What they're saying:
People who were ticketed over the year by the company say it’s not fair the company is profiting off tickets when the cameras weren’t even installed correctly.
"They’re expecting us to honor what they say about these cameras and just to pay up, and they’re not even obeying the law themselves," said Autumn Faleris who’s a Palm Bay driver that was issued a school zone ticket.
The National Motorists Association has seen problems countrywide with enforcement programs like this.
"I think it’s problematic when the government sets out a programs like this to ticket a whole bunch of people, and they’re not even following the rules that are set up for the program itself," said Jay Beeber who’s the Executive Director for Policy for the National Motorists Association.
City officials are disappointed in the implementation of the overall program.
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"You would expect a contractor working with a government to be at a very high level, and there results we’ve seen are just not that," Chandler Langevin who’s a Palm Bay City Councilman.
The company says the systems were installed with city approval.
"No, RedSpeed system was ever installed in Palm Bay without first obtaining the necessary permits and approvals from the appropriate authorities. All equipment was deployed only after the required permissions were secured, and in coordination with city officials," said David De La Espriella who’s the RedSpeed VP.
The city says RedSpeed should have followed state guidelines when doing the installation.
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"The school zone cameras were required to be installed in accordance with the 2023 guidelines issued by the Florida Department of Transportation. It was the responsibility of Redspeed to fully comply with these parameters and ensure all regulatory requirements were met during installation. The City of Palm Bay is looking into this matter and has formally directed Redspeed to conduct a thorough review of its compliance without delay," said a police spokesperson.
What's next:
The City of Palm Bay is now moving forward getting out of the contract with RedSpeed after all the problems since 2024.
The National Motorists Association says better options for school zone safety are police patrols and speed readers that show drivers how fast they’re going in the moment. In-the-moment enforcement is better than tickets that come weeks later, the organization believes.
The Source: FOX 35 Reporter Esther Bower visited 14 school zones in Palm Bay on multiple occasions to measure the cameras and how close they were to the road. She reached out to RedSpeed for comment on the alleged violations and was sent a statement. She also sent her findings to the city and was told they had not been informed of this before. She was sent a statement by the city ordering a new investigation into the installation. She spoke with a city council member and a driver who was ticketed in person. She also interviewed the national driving organization via zoom. Lastly, she spoke with FDOT over the phone to ensure she understood the rules in place about placement.