Boston’s City Council endorsed two bills before the State Legislature that would give cities and towns the ability to use road safety cameras to address dangerous driving behaviors.

The bills, S.2344 and H.3754, would allow cities and towns to install cameras at select intersections and roadways to detect and issue fines to drivers who exceed speed limits or run red lights. Councilor Brian Worrell said this would make streets safer for all road users, free up police officers to focus on other emergencies, and make traffic safety and enforcement more efficient.

Worrell added that other cities like Chicago and Washington, D.C. have implemented similar automated enforcement tools (AETs) and seen a significant decrease in speeding violations where cameras are located since their implementation.

In New York, the Automated Work Zone Speed Enforcement Program added cameras around highway construction sites, resulting in drivers slowing down by 30%, officials said. Since their deployment in 2023, these cameras have issued 700,000 tickets – accounting for just under 2% of drivers passing through these zones.

Though ticketing has proven controversial with drivers, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts has said that, when properly regulated, these tools do not pose a significant threat to privacy and are an alternative to license plate readers.

“AETs are designed solely to capture information on cars that commit specific moving violations. They are in limited use in Massachusetts for enforcement of bus lane and bus stop violations. Proposed legislation to expand AET for other moving violations contains strong privacy protections,” they said in a May blog post.

The bill also includes provisions that would prohibit images of the front of vehicles or their drivers, focusing exclusively on rear license plates. Photos and other recorded personal information will be barred from public records, and municipalities will be prohibited from selling the data collected.

Local governments would have complete control over where, if at all, cameras are placed, subject to local approval processes. Participating municipalities will be required to publish annual reports detailing traffic safety outcomes, and revenue generated would be diverted to the Massachusetts Transportation Trust Fund.

Councilor Sharron Durkan called the bills a common-sense solution to improve road safety. She added that fewer traffic stops would create fewer adverse interactions between Boston residents and police officers.

The bill has also proven popular with police departments across the state. In February, Worcester Police Department Sgt. James Foley said drivers have become more aggressive in recent years. With police departments across the Commonwealth facing staffing shortages, Foley said there are limited opportunities for consistent and proactive traffic enforcement.

“In Worcester alone, there are 208 traffic signals… Effectively monitoring even a fraction of those intersections through traditional enforcement is simply not feasible,” he said.

Both bills have been sent to committee, with H.3754 having an upcoming reporting date on July 31, the final day of this legislative session.