Drivers zipping past two Sandy Springs high schools are not catching a break anytime soon. On June 16, the Sandy Springs City Council voted to extend its agreement with RedSpeed Georgia, keeping automated school-zone speed cameras running near Riverwood International Charter School and North Springs High School through June 2027. City officials say the updated contract trims processing costs and shuts the door on certain extra fees so the program lines up with new state rules. Backers call it a student-safety tool, while critics say it can feel more like a cash machine.
As reported by WSB-TV, RedSpeed will continue to handle installation, maintenance, warning signs and citation processing. The Sandy Springs Police Department remains in charge of oversight and handling disputes over violation notices. Under the revised deal, the electronic processing fee is capped at $10 per violation, down from $25, and late fees, convenience fees and similar add-ons are barred unless specifically allowed under state law.
How state law reshaped the deal
House Bill 651 rewrites Georgia's rules for photo-enforced school-zone cameras. The legislation requires clearly visible warning signs with yellow flashing lights whenever a camera is actively issuing tickets and calls for local referendums before any of these programs can continue past June 30, 2027. According to the bill text, most provisions take effect July 1, 2026, with some signage and referendum requirements starting July 1, 2027.
Revenue and early results
Paid citations brought in about $604,642, with roughly $211,600 going to RedSpeed in service fees and around $393,000 set aside for public-safety purposes, according to reporting that reviewed city financial records. RedSpeed told WSB-TV the cameras appear to be changing driver behavior, saying that in spring 2026 about 93 percent of violators did not receive a second ticket. The devices were first rolled out in early 2025.
Council debate and pushback
The extension passed at the June 16 council meeting, but not unanimously. Councilmember Melody Kelley cast the lone no vote and cautioned against leaning too heavily on automated ticketing as a blunt instrument, according to Rough Draft Atlanta. Supporters, including retired officer Frank Roberts and Maj. Mike Lindstrom, argued that the cameras are a key tool to slow traffic around schools and pointed to prior crashes in the area. Lindstrom also told the meeting that only a small share of citations have been contested so far.
What drivers should expect
Under the new state framework, cameras can only issue penalties during school-day hours tied to instructional time, and the law lays out detailed testing, notice and appeal rules for local agencies, according to the bill text. As the program continues under the revised contract, Sandy Springs will have to update its signs, systems and internal procedures so they meet those new statewide standards and the upcoming referendum timetable.
For now, the extension keeps automated enforcement in place near the two high schools while the city works through the fresh statutory requirements and gears up for the public-vote provisions that kick in after June 30, 2027. Residents who want to dig into the numbers or the back-and-forth at City Hall can find more detail in the city's financial records and the official council meeting materials.
