CAPE CORAL, Fla — New speed cameras are rolling out in Cape Coral school zones, designed to slow drivers down and keep students safe. Fox 4’s Austin Schargorodski went to Cape Coral Police Headquarters to see how they work and what they mean for drivers.
Watch what CCPD told Austin about the cameras:
Skyline Boulevard is one of 17 school zones getting these cameras. This comes after Cape Coral police ran speed studies and clocked over 33,000 speeders in just one week—with 15,000 there alone.
“We’re really excited to see the outcome, to really protect the kids, and that’s the overall goal of this project,” said Mercedes Simonds, Cape Coral police spokesperson.
Mario Hooker has lived off Skyline for 15 years and says speeding happens daily—even when kids are crossing.
“Sometimes I’ll go up the street during the hours the children are crossing the street. You slow down to the speed limit and people are blowing behind you, honking their horn wanting you to speed up,” Hooker said.
Now, he’s hoping these cameras will change that. “I feel more secure, and I feel more better that the safety of elderly people and the kids crossing the street is well taken care of and they’re more protected,” said Hooker.
Cape Coral police say the cameras will track speeders and issue $100 tickets to drivers going more than 10 miles per hour over the limit. They go live March 1 with a 30-day warning period before citations begin. Plus, Simonds says it’s not just about slowing drivers down.
“One of the best things about it is it can also free up officers to go do other tasks, handle other crimes, and have faster response times to all the different calls we have going on in the city,” said Simonds.
The cameras only run on school days - 30 minutes before school starts, during school hours, and 30 minutes after dismissal. Cape Coral joins Hendry County and Sanibel, which also recently launched speed cameras in school zones.
If your school doesn’t have them yet, Cape Coral police say there’s still a way to make a difference. “If you see concerning traffic patterns or speeding at your school—please call. We can always add extra patrols to that area to make sure it’s covered too,” said Simonds.
Here is the full list of Cape Coral school zones with speed cameras:
- Ida S. Baker High School, 3500 Agualinda Blvd.
- Challenger Middle School, 624 Trafalgar Pkwy.
- Diplomat Middle School, 1039 NE 16th Ter.
- Mariner Middle School, 425 Chiquita Blvd. N.
- Trafalgar Middle School, 2120 Trafalgar Pkwy.
- Cape Elementary School, 4519 Vincennes Blvd.
- Diplomat Elementary School, 1115 NE 16th Ter.
- Gulf Elementary School, 3400 SW 17th Pl.
- Oasis Charter Elementary School (North), 2817 SW 3rd Ln.
- Patriot Elementary School, 711 SW 18th St.
- Pelican Elementary School, 3525 SW 3rd Ave.
- Skyline Elementary School, 620 SW 19th St.
- Trafalgar Elementary School, 1850 SW 20th Ave.
- Heritage Charter Academy of Cape Coral, 2107 Santa Barbara Blvd.
- St. Andrews Catholic School, 1509 SE 27th St.
- Nicaea Academy of Cape Coral, 3221 Chiquita Blvd S.
- Cape Coral Christian School, 811 Santa Barbara Blvd
