Twelve transit cameras will begin monitoring and fining Costa Rica motorists Thursday. The cameras will monitor the General Cañas highway, which connects La Sabana Park in western San José to Juan Santamaría International Airport near Alajuela, as well as the Florencio del Castillo highway, which connects eastern San José to the colonial capital of Cartago.
According to the Public Works and Transport Ministry (MOPT), the cameras will record the license plate number of drivers that exceed the highway speed limit. If clocked speeding, the car’s license plate number will be recorded and the driver’s name will appear online in the official government daily La Gaceta, www.gaceta.go.cr. The names of drivers caught on camera will also be published in a national daily newspaper, though MOPT is yet to announce which publication.
Each driver that receives a traffic citation will have 10 days to appeal the fine. MOPT officials said eventually they plan to alert drivers of citations by mailing them to their residencies or via text messages.
During the first 11 hours of the day Thursday, MOPT reported that 1,224 drivers were recorded exceeding the speed limit. The fine for a speeding citation is about $600.
