Eight average-speed cameras on I-25 now issue $75 fines in Colorado. Drivers have 45 days to pay or appeal, with no license points attached. CDOT says speeding in the zone already dropped 90% during warnings. Most speed cameras are beatable by those who know where they are. Even police radar and lidar are avoidable, given a little bit of help from things like detectors or navigation apps such as Waze that warn about enforcement ahead. Even police radar and lidar are avoidable, given a little bit of help from things like detectors. Colorado’s new speed cameras on I-25 have an entirely different methodology, and they’ll catch pretty much everybody who speeds. Starting Thursday, drivers traveling through the I-25 North Express Lanes construction zone between Mead and Berthoud can now receive a $75 fine based on their average speed over roughly six miles of highway. That makes the state’s latest enforcement effort much harder to game than a traditional radar camera parked on the side of the road. The new system relies on eight cameras placed in both directions of I-25. Instead of capturing speed at one point, it photographs and time-stamps vehicles at multiple locations, then calculates the average speed between them. If that figure exceeds the posted 65 mph limit by more than 10 mph, the registered owner receives a $75 civil penalty in the mail. Colorado enabled this type of enforcement after a 2023 law change allowed automated vehicle identification systems to be used for policing. In other words, slowing to 65 mph for a few hundred feet before each camera and then hammering back up to 85 mph will not save you. To avoid a ticket, you have to keep your speed down through the entire work zone. According to the Colorado Department of Transportation, the warning period that began March 1 already produced dramatic results. The agency mailed more than 4,100 warning notices, while the number of excessive-speed drivers in the corridor dropped by 90 percent. The work zone stretches from roughly Colorado 56 to Colorado 66 between Mead and Berthoud, where construction crews are building new express lanes, widening shoulders, rebuilding bridges, and straightening parts of the highway. The project is expected to continue through 2028. “The goal isn’t to punish drivers; it’s to prevent crashes before they happen,” said CDOT’s Chief Engineer Keith Stefanik to 9News. “Speeding continues to be a contributing factor to crashes and fatalities in Colorado. Safer speeds save lives — it’s that simple.” The cameras are not hidden. Signs warning drivers about automated enforcement are posted at least 300 feet before the monitored area. There are eight cameras in total, positioned in both directions near mile markers 244.3, 245.9, 247.5, and 249.4. Importantly, these are civil penalties much like the same ones we’ve seen in other states. That means that they won’t add points to one’s license and potentially won’t affect insurance rates. That said, if Colorado drivers do what we’ve seen in other places, they might ignore the tickets and wait to see if the state tries to enforce them further. Credit: CODOT
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