School Zone Speed Cameras Are Busting Drivers Even Outside Of Posted Hours In GA

Traffic cameras can be a contentious topic. They can help save lives, but they don't always work the way they're intended, and it's often drivers who pay the price, sometimes quite literally. According to the National Transportation Research Board, part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, more than 25,000 children are hurt every year while walking to or from school, with more than 100 fatalities. It's unknown how many of those incidents happen inside dedicated school zones, which are areas around schools with lowered speed limits and increased signage, often with parking restrictions and crossing guards. But it's hard to argue that even one child being injured or killed is acceptable, let alone thousands.

Speed cameras have been proven as an effective method to slow drivers and prevent accidents in school zones. In New York City, the installation of cameras in school zones reduced speeding by 63%. Traffic and speed camera laws differ state by state, however. States like Maryland, Washington, Oregon, Georgia and more have specific laws approving cameras in school zones, while some states, such as Texas and West Virginia, have banned their use.

In the town of Stockbridge, Georgia, the issue has gotten complicated in a state where many drivers are already frustrated over the lack of school zone speed camera reform. Motorists say the cameras don't work properly and are challenging violations, while police maintain that the issue lies with the drivers, not the cameras.

Local news station WSB-TV reported on the issue in Stockbridge, Georgia, in early December 2025, investigating complaints from drivers that the school zone speed cameras are operating beyond the posted times. Lowered speed limits in school zones are typically temporary and enforceable only during certain hours when kids are entering and leaving the school buildings. However, drivers in Stockbridge are being fined outside those times, with one driver claiming she received an $80 violation issued at 8:25 a.m., while the sign indicates the school zone is only active from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m.

Police have responded by placing blame on the drivers, saying the posted times show only when the speed limit drops, not when the cameras are active or inactive. In reality, the cameras operate for up to one hour before school starts and one hour after it ends. Local drivers are requesting better signage to clarify when the cameras in school zones are operational.

In the Florida city of Palm Bay, the school zone camera program was shut down after issues with faulty cameras. Lawmakers in Georgia have not seen the same success, proposing changes to school zone camera laws or a ban in the last two years that failed to make it through the legislative process. The local Fox5 channel reported issues with the cameras in three cities, not just Stockbridge. For now, drivers in Stockbridge can dispute a school zone speed camera citation in municipal court.