The cameras are in place. Signs warning about cameras are posted and fines are being issued. And by the looks of it, Hendry County motorist fall in to the “needs improvement” category if one were to issue them as collective school grade.

In just under a year since Hendry County’s pilot program began, more than 11,700 citations have been issued for speeding in school zones.

The program was meant to get people to pay attention and ease up on the gas. But the data shows otherwise, Lt. Kristi Archer told members of the school board this week.

"For some reason, we're not really seeing a deterrent in the number of speeders that we would like to see. I'd like to see the number of citations going down, but unfortunately, right now, that's just not what we're seeing with the data," she said.

The number of motorists speeding through school zones in Hendry County is rising this school year, effectively crushing what began as such a promising start when just 805 people were nabbed in September. That is down from a high of more than 2,100 citations in May.

But now the numbers are creeping up again. Last month speeders were cited more than 1,300 times.

Motorists are fined $100 for going 10 miles-per-hour or more in a school zone.
So far, more than $280,000 has been dispersed to the school district, the state, the county and to crossing guards. The company that owns the cameras also gets its own cut.

School board members this week said they’d like to see its share of more than $77,000 be used for flashing signs to try to get motorists’ attention to slow down in the school zones — and perhaps, earn a passing grade.

WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.