Drivers will have their speeds monitored by cameras beginning Monday along a three-mile stretch of Route 29 that is under construction in Howard County.
At first, speeders will just get warnings. Citations will start rolling out Dec. 22.
The deployment of the SafeZones Automated Speed Enforcement cameras is intended to enhance safety for crews working to add a third northbound lane to the roadway from north of Route 32 to south of Route 175, the State Highway Administration said Wednesday.
Workers on the $32.7 million project are already excavating part of the roadway's median for the third lane, and in the future will be paving the new lane and patching existing northbound lanes, the SHA said.
"Work zones present dangerous conditions and challenges that require extra concentration and slower speeds," said SHA Administrator Melinda B. Peters in a statement. "Considering four out of five people injured or killed in work zone crashes are vehicle occupants, not workers, it benefits everyone to obey work zone speed limits."
Since the beginning of 2013, six highway workers have been killed in Maryland, according to the SHA.
Work zone cameras are already deployed at 11 other locations in the state, and have a record of decreasing speeding violations by up to 90 percent in areas where they are deployed, the SHA said.
The speed limit in the area is 55 mph. Those clocked traveling at 67 mph or faster will receive a $40 citation, the SHA said.
Work is expected to continue through the fall of 2016, including lanes closures from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays and overnight closures from 8 p.m. to 5 p.m.
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