Photo by A. Drauglis.

A study released by the D.C. Department of Transportation reveals that speed cameras are reducing crashes and injuries at locations where they’re installed.

The review found that crashes are down by as much as 20 percent at the 87 locations where there speed cameras in D.C., a reduction from 2,240 before installation to 1,863. Injury crashes are down from 841 to 673 post-installation, while injuries fell to 996 from 1,251.

“Since D.C. is a pedestrian-focused city, the goal of the District’s safety programs is to make the schools, recreation centers, churches, parks, and commercial corridors safe for all users,” DDOT, which performed field assessments at each location, said in the study. As part of the study, engineering and design firm Parsons Brinckerhoff “conducted speed and volume studies, performed field assessments, reviewed speed data and analyzed crash data.”

Using the analysis results from the speed data analysis and the crash data analysis, as well as reviewing the field assessments results, the team was able to determine the nexus between traffic safety and the speed camera at most of the locations. At locations where the speed data or the crash data did not provide sufficient background information, engineering judgment was used to determine if any elements in the field assessments – such as the proximity to school zones and the presences of bicycle and pedestrian activity – provided additional information for safety considerations.

Overall, all of the results supported the nexus between traffic safety and the speed camera at all 295 existing, planned, and proposed locations.

In D.C., there are 87 existing speed camera locations, 39 planned and 169 proposed.