Ban the Cams note   MO House removed provisions that would have allowed this just recently: 
http://www.banthecams.org/201105121204/More-on-ATS-MO-speed-scamera-sneak.html

http://www.stltoday.com/news/traffic/along-for-the-ride/article_6621fa56-87a9-11e0-bbd5-001a4bcf6878.html

Cities push for speed cameras on I-70
BY KEN LEISER • This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. > 314-340-8215 STLtoday.com | Posted: Thursday, May 26, 2011 10:00 am

A group of cities in north St. Louis County will seek approval to install speed cameras along Interstate 70.

St. Ann and other cities agreed this week to apply to the Missouri Department of Transportation for permission to use the cameras. Earlier this year, the state Highways and Transportation Commission agreed that there was a place for speed cameras on state-controlled highways.

St. Ann Police Chief Robert Schrader said some of the cities in a so-called "Travel Safe Zone" would rotate the speed cameras at various spots along a seven-mile stretch of I-70. Police agencies in eight cities banded together last year to create the zone, stepping up speeding patrols and doubling speeding fines.

But not all eight cities will use the cameras - Schrader said he hoped three or more would be interested, though he did not identify which ones beyond St. Ann would participate. The cameras would be posted along the highway in both directions.

Schrader said conventional police patrols will continue to be the "primary speed deterrent tool" on I-70.

But those who want the cameras apparently don't intend to wait long.

Schrader suggested that cities whose ordinances already permit speed cameras may post them as soon as the upcoming Memorial Day weekend. St. Ann will not be among them, he said.

Because the plan calls for rotating the equipment, the speed cameras would be deployed differently than the ones posted last year by the city of Charlack on a quarter-mile stretch of I-170. Charlack, which came under heavy criticism, later removed the cameras, saying they had achieved their goal of reducing speeding.

In January 2010, St. Ann installed a speed camera on Ashby Road near Hoech Middle School. Still, the St. Ann Board of Aldermen would have to pass an ordinance to permit cameras on the interstate. Schrader said he would prefer to wait until July at the earliest to place cameras on I-70.

He said conventional police patrols have only caught 50 percent of the people speeding while the stepped up enforcement is in place. Should cameras be deployed, they would target only cars traveling 11 mph over the speed limit, he added.  (Ban the Cams note:  They can change this with a keystroke!)

If the proposed cameras are deployed on I-70 this weekend, an officer would be present with the equipment. There would also be warning signs to alert I-70 drivers of the photo enforcement.

Police chiefs in the "Travel Safe Zone" have insisted that their primary objective is safety and cracking down on dangerous driving.  (Ban the Cams comment:  SURREEEE,  If it were about "dangerous" driving you would be PULLING OVER PEOPLE!   Not sending a bill in the mail.  Don't you just love the officers lie!)

"If I could figure out a way to get people to change their behavior without fines, I would be all for that," Schrader said in an interview.

But critics, including St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch, have said speed cameras are more about generating revenue than safety. Fitch last year warned that the "Travel Safe Zone" was only a precursor to installing speed cameras.

Under the highway commission guidelines, speed cameras are permitted on state highways only in school zones, MoDOT work zones and Travel Safe Zones. The Travel Safe Zones - like the one on I-70 - are stretches of highway that have "above average" crash problems.

At least three cities in the I-70 zone won't participate. Berkeley Police Chief Frank McCall said his city doesn't have "immediate plans" to roll out speed cameras along its stretch of the highway. Woodson Terrace Mayor Lawrence "Butch" Besmer and Northwoods Mayor Everett Thomas said their cities also were not interested.
 

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