Two new speed cameras in northeast Tacoma recorded nearly 400,000 speeding detections in their first month of operation, from September 14 through October 11, according to city data reported by The News Tribune and carried by multiple Washington outlets.

Source: The News Tribune via Tacoma Local Minute

The cameras, on Norpoint Way NE and SR-509/Marine View Drive where the posted limit is 40 mph, counted about 515,000 vehicle passages in that period — meaning roughly 77 percent were recorded over the limit. The figure counts camera detections, not 400,000 different drivers, since one vehicle can be recorded more than once.

More than 180 detections were at 70 mph or faster in the 40-mph zone. Most detections, about 55 to 60 percent, were less than 10 mph over the limit, The News Tribune reported. Average speeds edged down slightly between the first and final weeks of the warning month, from about 44.1 to 43.1 mph in one direction.

The volume overwhelmed processing capacity. After a one-month warning period ended on October 14, the city and its camera vendor began mailing $145 civil infractions to a randomly selected group of up to 100 registered vehicle owners per camera each day, chosen from vehicles recorded above a speed threshold the city has not disclosed. Tacoma Police traffic-enforcement staff review the camera evidence before a citation is issued.

Source: FOX 13 Seattle / KOMO News reporting

Tacoma plans to activate six more cameras starting in January 2027, according to regional reporting on the program. Drivers on the corridor — including truckers using SR-509 toward the Port of Tacoma — should note that enforcement is now live after the warning period, even though only a sample of recorded drivers will receive a ticket on any given day.