Highway Speed Cameras go live on I-90 and I-5 in Spokane, Skagit Counties to encourage safe driving

OLYMPIA – A new pilot program using cameras to identify speeding vehicles on two Washington roadways launches this week.

The Washington State Department of Transportation is partnering with the Washington Traffic Safety Commission and Washington State Patrol to reduce the number of speed-related crashes with a pilot program created by the state Legislature. Highway Speed Cameras placed on two highways in different parts of the state will track speed and license plates of speeding vehicles. The registered owners of the vehicles observed speeding will receive courtesy notices through the mail encouraging them to slow down – but there will be no fine to pay.

The goal of this program is to change driver behavior, prevent collisions and injuries and save lives. In 2023, the state saw an increase in the number of fatal and serious crashes, including 810 total roadway deaths. On state-run highways alone, there were 358 fatal or serious injury crashes where speeding was cited as a factor, and that does not include local roadway crashes. Speeding is one of the leading high-risk factors for fatal and serious injuries statewide, according to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

Program details

The pilot program is funded by $1 million from the state Legislature. It will be tested in eastern and western Washington at the following locations starting Thursday, April 10:

• Southbound Interstate 5 between Cook and Bow Hill roads in Skagit County.
• Eastbound I-90 near Liberty Lake between the Liberty Lake and State Line Interchanges in Spokane County.

These locations were selected after program managers reviewed crash data and targeted roadways where speed was a factor in fatal and serious injury collisions. The locations were also selected because they provided enough space between on- and off-ramps to obtain accurate data.

When a driver receives a courtesy notice, it informs them of the speed at which their vehicle was traveling and the potential cost of a ticket for that speed. The message on the courtesy notice focuses on safety. This program does not issue fines, nor does it affect driving records. Learn more about the pilot program and leave comments at the Highway Speed Cameras online open house through June 30.

Following the pilot program’s conclusion in June, WSDOT will analyze the data from the cameras, review public feedback and report back to the Legislature.

New safety tool

These cameras will track speeds using the “average speed method.” This involves placing multiple cameras at each location and tracking the time it takes a vehicle to travel between two different measure points. The vehicle’s average rate of speed between those two locations will be used to determine if the driver was speeding. The cameras will hover 19 feet over the roadway from trailers placed on the side of the road. They will remain in those locations until late June.

This program is different from the upcoming Work Zone Speed Camera Program, which aims to slow drivers as they pass through active road construction work zones. The Work Zone Speed Camera Program uses mobile cameras that will move to various work zones around the state, generating images that could result in a $248 infraction for the second violation and each additional infraction.