In just 48 hours, thousands of drivers tore through Beacon Falls at speeds well above the limit, turning a quiet stretch of street into a corridor of constant speed violations.

A recent traffic study conducted by the Beacon Falls Police Department in late October recorded more than 3,000 speeding violations in two days. All of those vehicles were traveling at least 10 miles per hour over the posted 40 mph speed limit in that section of South Main Street.

“We were all kind of taken back by that,” said Beacon Falls Police Officer Jay Piccirillo. “It’s a quiet town — a small town. I didn’t think there was a ton of traffic here.” 

Those jaw-dropping numbers revealed a serious safety issue hiding in plain sight and pushed Beacon Falls toward a new approach to traffic enforcement. Beginning today, the town will install pole-mounted speed cameras to slow drivers and reduce the risk of serious crashes.

The cameras, supplied by Traffic Logix, will track vehicle speeds and collect real-time data. The system processes that information through a cloud-based platform, allowing police to review violations almost immediately after they occur.

“Every time a car drives by and violates the speed limit, we’re getting that data in real-time,” Piccirillo said. “We have all of it at our fingertips.” 

Each violation includes a full-size image of the vehicle traveling down the roadway as well as a close-up photograph of the rear license plate. The data is reviewed and verified before any citation is issued, ensuring the violation matches the registered vehicle.

For the first 30 days after installation, the cameras will operate under a warning-only period. Drivers traveling 10 mph or more over the speed limit will receive a notice by mail but will not be fined. After that grace period ends, citations will carry a monetary penalty.

Unlike traditional traffic stops, speed camera violations are not state infractions. Beacon Falls passed a town ordinance to participate in the state’s speed camera program, outlining how enforcement works and how drivers can receive citations. The ordinance is available on the town’s website.

The first violation carries a flat $65 fine, payable directly to the town. Each additional violation costs approximately $80, regardless of how fast the vehicle was traveling over the limit. Since the citation is issued to the vehicle rather than the driver, the registered owner is responsible for paying the fine.

“There’s no points on your license, no insurance issues, and nothing reported to the DMV,” Piccirillo said. “It’s strictly a fine that gets paid to the town; the town must use it for traffic improvement.”

By comparison, a driver stopped by an officer for speeding could face a state citation costing between $150 and $180, along with potential insurance increases and points on their driving record. 

Emergency vehicles are exempt from the system. Police can whitelist license plates for town vehicles, ambulances, fire apparatus, and police cruisers, so emergency response will not be tampered with; however, volunteer emergency responders driving personal vehicles must still obey traffic laws.

Beacon Falls is the first in the Naugatuck Valley to adopt the technology. Other towns are moving in the same direction. In Prospect, officials are seeking permits to install cameras on Route 69 following a fatal crash due to speeding vehicles earlier this year.

Police stress that the program’s goal is safety, not revenue.

“These numbers showed us we had a real issue in town,” Piccirillo said. “We needed to make headway, and this was the best way to do it.”

Officials also emphasized that the new speed cameras are separate from license plate reader cameras already operating around Beacon Falls. Those cameras are used to identify stolen vehicles or to alert police when a vehicle linked to a felon enters town, and they do not track speed.

Police also warned drivers not to attempt to evade the cameras by blocking or removing license plates.

“If you’re blocking your plate or don’t have one on the back of the vehicle, we’ll send an officer out there waiting,” Piccirillo said. “Then you’ll be pulled over and face real consequences.”