BRADENTON, Fla. — Manatee County residents are now facing pricey tickets for getting caught speeding in school zones.

At the beginning of the school year, the county was only giving out warnings for its new speed detection program, but it has been over a month since tickets began being handed out.

The program saw speed detection cameras installed at 27 different schools.

Since November 1st, the county has issued more than 9,000 tickets, with each ticket carrying a $100 fine.

"You're looking at about $930,000-plus in issued notices of violation," said David DeLaEspriella with RedSpeed, the company that provides the detection cameras. "That doesn't necessarily mean they have been paid."

According to Manatee County, people are ticketed for going 10 miles or more over the speed limit during school zone hours. 

When it comes to these cameras being active, this is how the operate according to RedSpeed:

• Cameras turn on 30 minutes before the school time begins.
• 30 minutes before any school breakfast schedule.
• Cameras stay on during the entire school day.
• Cameras turn off 30 minutes after the school day has ended.

Manatee County officials laid out how the money would be spent: (The use of these funds is controlled by Florida statute)

• $3 goes to the Florida Department of Revenue for the Department of Law Enforcement Criminal Justice Standards and Training Trust Fund.
• $5 will go to the School Crossing Guard Recruitment Retention Program in the county.
• $12 will go to the county school district to be used for school security initiatives, transportation, or to improve the safety of student walking conditions. This also includes charter schools.
• $20 will be remitted to the Florida Department of Revenue for deposit for the Revenue Fund.
• $60 will go to the county and be used to administer the speed detection systems in school zones and other public safety initiatives. One-third of that goes to RedSpeed.

These cameras are something Kristen Patton, a parent of two, says she supports.

“It is very important to me because I would like to be able to let my kids eventually ride their bikes to school,” she said. “If you’re not going to abide by the rules, you deserve a ticket.”

Some residents say, though, they’re getting tickets outside of school hours.

However, DeLaEspriella says they do daily checks on the system for accuracy.

“You know, I’m not going to say it’s 100% infallible, but it’s definitely calibrated and meets all the specifications that are required,” he said. “If someone believes that they are not wrong, they have the option of requesting a hearing. Then that goes in front of the magistrate, where they can then review all of the evidence. As part of that process, the officer or traffic enforcement officer would be there and have all the calibration certifications to show that it was working on the day the violation was issued."

According to Manatee County, if you do not pay, request a hearing, or file an affidavit, you will be issued a Uniform Traffic Citation (UTC). You can pay that ticket online, by phone at 888-213-0715 or by mail at:

School Zone Speed Enforcement Program
PO Box 8000
Oldsmar, FL 34677-6802

When the cameras were installed this year, there was a grace period that issued warnings to drivers instead of an actual ticket. But that grace period ended November 1st. So far, residents say they like the cameras. They believe there needs to be more safety surrounding schools in the county.

For now, Patton still isn’t ready to let her children ride their bikes to school.

"Right now, I just don’t feel like people pay attention enough to allow my kids to cross some of those main roads that need to be crossed," she said.

She's waiting to see how anti-speeding measures work in the long run before making a decision that impacts her children’s safety.