As students gear up for their first day of school, so do the traffic cameras in Kirkland. According to the City of Kirkland, automated traffic enforcement cameras are set to snap back into action on September 3rd in the concerted effort to keep the speed demons in check through the school zones. These measures are the city's way to ensure the safety of schoolchildren around Finn Hill combined school zone on 84th Avenue Northeast, encompassing Carl Sandburg and Henry David Thoreau elementary schools, Discovery Community School, Finn Hill Middle School, and the Environmental and Adventure School.
Drivers best watch their speedometers because when the beacons are flashing, the speed limit drops to 20 miles per hour. Last year, the same approach was applied to the Lakeview Elementary School stretch and other pilot areas that, as it turns out, saw a significant drop in speed violations. Despite the success, there's still a lingering question over whether this is the most efficient way to curb reckless driving or a revenue ploy. On this note, the City insists that the coffers filled by these camera-snapped fines are directly allocated to projects that enhance the safety of cyclists and pedestrians in the vein of the Neighborhood Safety Program.
With the cameras ready to flash at the first whiff of speeding, Kirkland's message is clear: slow down for the kids' sake. Yet, there's an undercurrent of controversy about automated enforcement, raising the old debate of surveillance versus safety. What's clear, in the meantime, is that the city has a plan to keep school zones safe, and the collected fines have a direction. Whether this makes for a healthier coexistence between vehicles and school zones or just more grumbling at traffic fines, only the school year will tell.
