The Florida Times-Union
Friday, March 30, 2007

1 mph over and you'll pay in new speed zone

Speeders beware: Fines are $50 more in the "enhanced penalty" area on I-95.
By DAVID BAUERLEIN, The Times-Union

Lead-foot drivers will pay an extra $50 soon if caught speeding in a 6-mile stretch of Interstate 95 in
Jacksonville.
Starting Monday, signs will mark the "Enhanced Penalty Speed Zone" on I-95 from just south of Butler
Boulevard to north of Emerson Street. Motorists who speed will face the usual fines until May 1, when
troopers will begin tacking on another $50, Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Bill Leeper said.
The stiffer fine is a new wrinkle in the state's battle to control speeding on dangerous roads. Highways in
Duval, Brevard and Broward counties will be the first to get the zones, targeting areas that have experienced
an above-average number of crashes related to speeding, Leeper said.
Speeding tickets in Duval County range from $83.50 to $208.50, depending how fast the driver is going. For
instance, a driver going 6 to 9 mph over the speed limit gets an $83.50 ticket. That same ticket in the I-95
penalty zone would be $133.50.
Florida law says drivers who speed will just get a warning if they are not going more 5 mph faster than the
posted limit, Leeper said. But in the I-95 zone, there will be no cushion - drivers would get a $50 fine if they
are 1 to 5 mph over the limit. The speed limit in the designated zone is 65 mph.
The Legislature authorized the zones as a pilot project that will run through July 2010. The state will keep
statistics on whether the higher fines make the highway safer.
Proceeds from the additional fine will pay for nursing homes for Medicaid patients suffering brain and spinal
cord injuries, and also support certified trauma centers in counties where the penalty zones are created.