Avondale council hears data on speed safety camera program; staff to return with contract options in November

The Avondale City Council on Sept. 8 received a joint presentation from the Avondale Police Department and Avondale City Court on the mobile speed safety camera program (photo radar), including deployment criteria, speed and crash data, vendor operations and court impacts. Councilmembers raised safety, labor and constitutional concerns and asked staff to return with contract termination costs and additional data in November.

Lieutenant Justin Iowen of the Avondale Police Department, who oversees patrol and traffic, said the program was approved by council in May 2022 and implemented in May 2024 with Vero Mobility under a five‑year contract. The city operates two movable units rather than fixed sites. Iowen described the city’s site‑selection criteria: accident history and trends from the Spillman and state tracking systems, officer and traffic bureau input, community requests to a traffic hotline, and Vero Mobility site assessments to ensure camera placement and signage requirements are met.

Iowen summarized evaluation data for Aug. 1, 2024, through July 31, 2025. He said one covert speed sensor deployment on Dysart Road (45 mph posted) recorded about 60,000 vehicles in one week;…