Slowing Maryland Motorists and Saving Lives

THE SPEED at which Maryland lawmakers have moved to authorize speed cameras would barely register on a radar gun. One year, Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) vetoed legislation that would have authorized the cameras. Other years, a bloc of mostly conservative lawmakers drummed up specious fears about Big Brother watching motorists. It was a win for public safety, then, when the state Senate reversed itself last week to pass legislation that would allow local jurisdictions to install the cameras in roadwork and school zones. The House, which has approved such legislation in the past, should do so again.

Speed cameras are a fair and efficient way to save lives. Speeding might seem harmless -- who hasn't pressed on the pedal while late for a meeting? -- but speeding-related accidents account for more than one-third of traffic fatalities in Maryland. It's no surprise, then, that a measure aimed at protecting road workers and children has strong support from law enforcement officials. They would rather have officers fighting crime than doling out tickets.

The cameras aren't meant to surprise motorists: Signs would warn of their presence, and the cameras would photograph only drivers going at least 12 miles an hour over the speed limit. A pilot program in Montgomery County proved the cameras could be effective. In Chevy Chase Village, for example, cameras along Connecticut Avenue reduced the average vehicle speed from 49 mph to 37 mph, and the number of collisions per month from 14 to three. Yes, sometimes the cameras blunder, but so do humans. The legislation would allow for a fair appeals process.

Yet some lawmakers seem intent on turning a public-safety issue into a privacy one; Sen. E.J. Pipkin (R-Queen Anne's) read aloud from George Orwell's novel "1984" on the Senate floor. Why is it more intrusive for a camera to snap a photo than for an officer to pull someone over? Little wonder that polls show strong support for the cameras.

The cameras shouldn't be used to raise revenue, and the legislation limits tickets to $40 and stipulates that the fines go toward paying for the machines and promoting public safety. Eventually, backers of the bill hope, the cameras will generate less and less revenue as motorists learn to ease up on the accelerator.