Effective right now, San Francisco is the first city in California to have speed-monitoring cameras that will snap pictures of any vehicle going 11 mph over the speed limit. Though the fines won’t kick in for another 60 days.

We’ve known for more than a year that San Francisco would be getting speed-monitoring cameras that would take pictures of vehicles going more than 11 miles per hour over the speed limit, then sending the driver an automated ticket in the mail. This past January, the SF Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) announced that these cameras would be up sometime in March.

And the speed cameras are now up and running, as of Thursday morning, as KTVU reports. According to KRON4, there are 33 speed cameras citywide, though only 12 of them are working and snapping pictures as of today. The Chronicle describes the cameras as being “strategically placed near freeway exits or on busy waterfront arteries.”

Image: SFMTA

The SFMTA is making absolutely no secret of these cameras’ locations (unlike the SFPD with those automated license plate readers, whose locations the department refuses to disclose). All 33 cameras are installed at the above-seen locations, and the SFMTA is even being up front about which 12 cameras are currently working, or “Issuing Warnings.”

The camera system will only send warnings for speeders for the first 60 days of the program. But come mid-May, those citations will be tickets you have to pay.

The cameras will automatically take pictures of the rear license plate of any vehicle going 11 miles per hour or more over the speed limit. Tickets will then arrive in the mail within two weeks. You can be fined anywhere from $50 to $500 depending on how fast beyond the speed limit you are traveling, though you can try to make the case that you're a “low-income offender” and pay less for the tickets.

These citations are only civil penalties, points will not be applied to your driver’s license.

But KGO reports that SFMTA estimates they will issue 42,000 citations per day, a pretty staggering sum (though maybe that will help with the agency’s budget deficit?). One camera at Geary and Seventh Avenue is even projected to produce 4,000 citations per day. So watch your ass at that intersection, drivers!

The cameras are arriving at an opportune time. Traffic deaths hit a 17-year high in 2024, with 42 fatalities, most of these caused by excessive speed.

Though there may be problems with this system. KGO reports that “ABC7 News reporter J.R. Stone walked half a mile in each direction of the Harrison Street intersection [with cameras] and could not fire any speed limit signs.”

If you think these speed cameras are a cause for cheer, you can join like-minded people at a speed camera celebration happy hour Thursday night from 6 to 7:30 pm at The Willows (Folsom and 12th streets), where Mayor Lurie will pop in and say a few words.

San Francisco is now the first city in California to get these speed cameras, though they’re also coming soon to Oakland, San Jose, and Los Angeles.

Related: Dozens of Speed Cameras Planned in SF for Areas With ‘Known Risks’ Like Crashes and Sideshows [SFist]

Image via SFMTA