Madison County schedules public hearing on school‑zone speed cameras; vendor proposes covering equipment upgrades

Madison County supervisors agreed to hold a public hearing at 6 p.m. Feb. 25 on a vendor proposal to install automated speed cameras in school zones, starting with a section of Route 29. The board instructed staff to circulate vendor materials in advance.

County staff said a vendor representative from Blue Line Solutions, identified in the meeting as Mr. Campbell, proposed covering about $60,000 to $61,000 in equipment upgrades on Route 29 so cameras would function there. “That company would cut … I think it’s, like, $60 or $61,000. They propose to cover that,” staff said.

The sheriff’s office has provided speed data showing high speeds at times in the Route 29 corridor, including a median near 52 mph where the posted limit is 45 mph, staff said. Supervisors and staff discussed whether cameras should be used only in school zones; staff noted the statutory code provision shown during the meeting allows enforcement in school zones and construction zones if enabled locally.

Board members and staff also raised two legal and procedural points: camera citations are typically civil (not DMV point‑assessed) and pending state legislation could remove much of the local revenue from camera citations and restrict fund uses to testing and camera repair. “Virginia State is trying to take away the funds from that camera … So we can only use funds to repair the camera or do the testing,” one board member said.

The board asked county staff to place the vendor before the board at the second meeting in February and to advertise the public hearing. Staff will circulate vendor materials, the sheriff’s speed analyses, and a written summary of the pending state bill before the hearing.

No final decision on deployment sites, vendor selection, or contract terms was made at the meeting.