‘Highway of Death’ needs higher fines for speeding, Md. officials say
Screen, along with other members of the 210 Traffic Safety Committee, joined Prince George’s County and state leaders and residents on Wednesday to once again push for a safer Route 210, also known as Indian Head Highway — one of the deadliest highways in the Washington area. This time, they are advocating for legislation that would increase the electronic speed monitoring fine, which is currently limited to $40.
This year’s coming legislative session will mark the third consecutive year the bill will be introduced in the Maryland General Assembly, Screen said.
The bill is meant to target “super speeders” and “repeat speeders,” said Ron Weiss, a member of the 210 Traffic Safety Committee. Currently, there are three warning signs to alert there is a speed camera, with the last sign showing the rate of speed, Weiss said.
The $40 fine is triggered after exceeding the speed limit by 12 miles per hour, and then increases based on speed, according to the bill. Traveling at speeds over 107 miles per hour could result in a fine of up to $530. Repeat violators, those who compile multiple infractions within two years, face added civil penalties of upward of $350, according to the bill.
“Lawful drivers are unaffected by this bill,” Weiss said.
Indian Head Highway, a busy thoroughfare, starts near Charles County and extends to the Capital Beltway. This year, a camera recorded a car traveling 170 miles per hour in a 55 miles per hour zone, according to the 210 traffic safety committee. As of Dec. 16, Prince George’s County police officers have conducted more than 1,107 traffic stops on route 210 and issued 2,470 citations or warnings, according to the department. There were 11,786 citations issued from speed cameras to repeat offenders from Jan. 1, 2020 to Aug. 21, 2023, according to the 210 traffic safety committee.
Two people have been killed in crashes on the highway, within Prince George’s County’s jurisdiction, this year, county police said. According to the 210 traffic safety committee, there have been 91 fatalities on what some in the area have dubbed the “Highway of Death” since 2007.
According to AAA Mid-Atlantic, Indian Head Highway has seen “way too many traffic deaths” throughout the years.
“Given the number of traffic fatalities on that stretch of road and the continuing problem with high speeds, AAA is supportive of higher fines. Hopefully, it will serve as a deterrent for reckless and aggressive drivers and result in reduced speeds and less carnage on the roadway,” Ragina Cooper Ali, public and government affairs manager at AAA Mid-Atlantic, said in a statement.
County efforts for a safer Route 210 have a long history. Five years ago, Del. Kris Valderrama (D-Prince George’s) spearheaded the state legislation that passed and led the county to install a single speed camera along the route. This year, she introduced a bill for more speed cameras after construction zone cameras were taken down, which also passed, she said. There are currently three cameras on the 13-mile roadway, and three additional mobile cameras will be placed, Screen said.
Wednesday’s news conference aimed to rally the community in support of the legislation to increase fines, ahead of next year’s session. County leaders, including Prince George’s County Executive Angela D. Alsobrooks (D), County Council Member Calvin S. Hawkins II (D-At Large) and Del. Jamila J. Woods (D-Prince George’s), attended the event and encouraged people to show up in Annapolis to champion the bill.
“The current $40 fine has not kept up with the cost of living. It was instituted over, almost two decades ago … with no penalty for nonpayment, leaving many motorists to simply ignore the posted signs repeatedly,” Valderrama said.
If passed, the increased fines would mirror tickets police officers issue during a traffic stop, Valderrama said. She also said speed cameras are not a “commuter tax,” as some opponents might say.
“It is a citation,” she said.
Alsobrooks spoke of her news conference in 2019, where she called for safety measures on Indian Head Highway following a fatal crash that killed three children just before the new year.
“I will repeat what I said here almost five years ago. … I don’t care what we legislate until we change the hearts of people, convince our neighbors and friends that our lives matter,” Alsobrooks said. “And that you don’t have the right to travel on our roadways in a way that presents a danger to other people. … We have to decide that this is important, and we do so by holding people accountable.”
Some community members voiced their concerns that fines won’t be enough to deter speeding drivers. Valderrama said, “We have to start somewhere.”
Kenniss Henry, 75, who has advocated for traffic safety across the state since her daughter Natasha Pettigrew, a third law-year student and Green Party candidate for U.S. Senate, was struck and killed by a driver in 2010 elsewhere in the county, said this bill moves traffic safety forward.
“Every time we can get a change to the law that does something to protect our people, it’s a good thing,” Henry said.
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