State speed radar catches hundreds of motorists driving faster than 40 mph in I-490 construction zone and receives fines

MONROE COUNTY, N.Y. — A speed radar camera on a state vehicle has caught dozens, perhaps hundreds, of people driving more than 40 miles per hour on I-490 since it was set up at a construction site Sunday.

News10NBC lead investigative reporter Berkeley Brean decided to drive the route himself after receiving many angry emails about the speed trap.

The speed trap zone begins after you exit the S-curve on eastbound I-490, where orange construction barrels and a white SUV with yellow lights mark the location of the speed radar.

Any car, motorcycle and truck traveling faster than 60 km/h faces a $50 fine if detected by the radar. Linda Olsen, who received a $50 ticket from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) radar, initially thought it was a scam.

“I was too, we were stunned,” Olsen said. “I wasn’t happy. I thought this was almost a money grab.”

This year, DOT photo radar has issued more than 132,255 tickets statewide, including more than 44,206 around Rochester. The total amount of fines paid is up to $5.1 million. The photo radar is part of a state transportation campaign to slow traffic at construction sites.

In January, the DOT commissioner told state lawmakers about a driver in Irondequoit “who was clocked going 140 miles per hour” through a work zone on Route 104.

The commissioner also reported that construction crews are starting to notice traffic slowing down. Photo radar is being used more frequently: Last year, Monroe County school districts issued 4,700 citations to drivers passing school buses on red lights, and 12,000 cars were ticketed in 10 days when Albany used photo radar in school speed zones.

The speed limit on I-490 at the photo radar location is always 40 miles per hour, but the location is problematic because warning signs are difficult to see unless actively looked for, especially when making a sharp right turn on the highway.

“No, no, I never saw any signs. They were not clear signals. If they were there, they weren’t obvious signs,” Olsen said.

The photo radar will remain at the I-490 construction site until Saturday. The state publishes the locations of all 24 cameras currently deployed in New York, and this is the only one in Monroe County.

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