The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is set to revise its traffic camera policies after a local lawyer successfully challenged a speeding ticket, revealing that the camera readings may not be as precise as previously claimed.

Attorney Matt Ricciardi won a Court of Appeals ruling in May, the city’s highest court, arguing that DDOT could not justify issuing a $100 fine because the department acknowledges a 1 mph margin of error in its speed cameras. Ricciardi, with a background in computer science, examined the specific camera’s deployment log linked on his citation, which confirmed the camera's accuracy was within 1 mph on the date he was ticketed.

Associate Judge Joshua Deahl, appointed by former President Trump, wrote in the May 7 opinion, “The District is not free to simply regulate around that statutory requirement and ’deem’ that some modicum of evidence that is less than clear and convincing nonetheless satisfies that standard.”

In response, DDOT proposed changing its $100 ticketing threshold from 11-15 mph over the speed limit to “more than 10 mph” over the limit. The public comment period on this update ended recently, and the revised language is now headed to Mayor Muriel Bowser’s desk for approval.

DDOT stated to The Times that the Ricciardi case highlights regulatory requirements lagging behind technological and current standards, not the accuracy or effectiveness of the speed camera program. The department is reviewing regulatory and administrative changes to better reflect current operations and standards.

Verra Mobility, the company providing the cameras, affirmed that its 3D radar and high-resolution digital imaging technology complies with all applicable laws and regulations and delivers a high level of accuracy.

Additionally, Chicago ABC affiliate WLS-TV reported last year that the city’s automated cameras had a margin of error of 0.62 mph.

Sources