North Albany School Zone to See Fewer Speeding Tickets

New flashing lights will limit enforcement window, likely reducing citations

Apr. 9, 2026 at 9:08pm

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An abstract, impressionistic photograph of blurred school zone lights and signage, conveying the concept of targeted traffic enforcement through a soft, atmospheric lens.The new flashing lights in the North Albany school zone aim to improve safety by more precisely targeting enforcement during peak student arrival and dismissal times.Albany Today

The city of Albany, Oregon is installing new flashing lights in the school zone on North Albany Road, which will significantly reduce the time window when drivers can be ticketed for speeding. The lights will only flash for 230 minutes per school day, down from the current 600 minutes, potentially leading to a 62% drop in citations.

Why it matters

The new school zone lights aim to improve safety for students, but also highlight the challenges of enforcing speed limits and the potential unintended consequences of technology-driven enforcement. The changes could impact revenue for the city while also altering driver behavior in the area.

The details

The flashing lights will be programmed to operate from 7:20 a.m. to 9:25 a.m. in the morning and 2:30 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. in the afternoon on typical school days. On early release Wednesdays, the lights will flash from 1:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. This is in line with Oregon Department of Transportation guidance to start the lights 30 minutes before school begins and continue 15 minutes after, then start again 15 minutes before dismissal and run for 30 minutes after. The $42,900 project is being installed by contractor North Star Electrical, who is still waiting on parts but expects the lights to be operational in the next couple weeks.

  • The new flashing lights are expected to be operational in the next couple weeks.
  • On typical school days, the lights will flash from 7:20 a.m. to 9:25 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 4:15 p.m.
  • On early release Wednesdays, the lights will flash from 1:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.

The players

Chris Cerklewski

The city engineer working on the project with the contractor.

North Star Electrical

The contractor installing the $42,900 project for the new flashing lights.

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What they’re saying

“On a typical school day, the lights will be programmed to flash in the morning from 7:20 a.m. to 9:25 a.m., and in the afternoon from 2:30 p.m. to 4:15 p.m. On early release days (which are typically on Wednesdays) schools get out one hour earlier so the lights will flash in the afternoon from 1:30 pm to 3:15 pm.”

— Chris Cerklewski, City Engineer

What’s next

The contractor is still waiting on parts, but expects the new flashing lights to be operational in the next couple weeks.

The takeaway

The new flashing lights in the North Albany school zone aim to improve safety, but will also significantly reduce the time window when drivers can be ticketed for speeding. This could lead to a substantial drop in citations, impacting city revenue while also potentially changing driver behavior in the area.