by Tori Newby ‘22

Olney residents likely have mixed feelings about the speed cameras that seem to permanently reside on Route 108. While the rush-hour drivers despise them, pedestrians and bikers can see them as a way to keep the roads safe. County-wide, Montgomery County made over $20 million in speeding ticket revenue in 2015. However, the Olney cameras catch the most drivers out of the speed cameras in the entire county. The $40 tickets, earned by going 12 mph over the speed limit, have appeared in many drivers’ mailbox at some point or another.

Montgomery County should reconsider the location of these cameras. While the knowledge of a speed camera around the corner or down a hill makes drivers slow down, the decrease in speed can be to the point where the roads are unsafe. Some drivers speed through 108, only to brake abruptly when reaching the speed camera by Rite Aid, for example. Other drivers inch along through the areas where the speed cameras are, causing congestion and frustrating others. On the other hand, those unused to Olney neighborhoods don’t realize what is up the street, and they often get flashed by the camera and fined. This especially poses a threat to new drivers, who may not react well to the wide variety of driving speeds in Olney. The speed cameras thus prove to be a bigger profit to Montgomery County than they are a protection of Olney residents.