The Evolution of Speed Enforcement in 2020

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, temporary law enforcement policies–such as reductions in traffic stops and speed enforcement–were enacted to help reduce the spread of the virus. One of the results of this, according to the The News-Gazette is a significant reduction in speeding tickets. Stats from the Illinois State Police document the drop: from March 16 to May 6 last year, 13,885 speeding tickets were issued across the state. During the same period this year, only 1,396 were issued statewide. 

Reducing traffic stops allowed officers to be diverted elsewhere and, importantly, made it easier for those agencies to manage leave of absence when officers became sick or had to be quarantined. 

This new model was already in place when the “defund the police” movement emerged. Law enforcement officers across the nation began to exit their careers, leaving their agencies shorthanded. So these temporary law enforcement policies continue: minor traffic stops and speed enforcement are not the priority they were back in January.

What has become a priority is augmenting and prioritizing the work of police officers. Radar speed signs from Radarsign do both. In fact, the Great Bend Tribune calls Radarsign’s TC-600 “Another cop on duty” and quotes City of Great Bend Police Chief David Bailey saying “officers cannot be everywhere, all the time” and these radar speed signs “serve as an extra officer, 24/7.”

Paired with Radarsign’s Streetsmart traffic data reporting software, law enforcement agencies can analyze the traffic data and prioritize when and where to place officers for enforcement. With limited resources, the ability to strategically target high-demand areas is critical.

Finally, when compared to the cost of full-time police presence for traffic enforcement, communities generally see a full return on investment in less than a week using this formula: $30/hour police salary x 24 hours x 7 days = $5000/week. This amount is far more than the cost of a typical radar speed sign, which is a critical consideration in today’s economic environment. 

Radarsign brand radar speed signs are available in sizes suited for any road conditions making them a versatile option regardless of the location of the speed issue. 

Charlie Robeson: Radarsign™ Co-founder & Director of Sales and Marketing