Alabama I-65 Work Zone Cameras Can Mail $250 Tickets No Sooner Than Nov. 16

• A photo speed enforcement pilot on I-65 near milepost 209 in Chilton County, Alabama, can mail a $250 civil ticket to the owner of any vehicle recorded more than 10 mph over the posted limit while workers are present.
• Citations start no earlier than Nov. 16, 2026, carry no license points, and ALEA has yet to announce the warning period or the exact first day.
• The notice gives the owner at least 60 days to pay or ask for a hearing by phone or online, and ignoring it counts as admitting liability for the full fine.

Your Next Speeding Ticket Could Come From the Mailbox, Not a Trooper

Alabama is putting a photo speed enforcement system into one interstate work zone, and the first citations can go out on Nov. 16, 2026 at the earliest. ALDOT, the state transportation department, and ALEA, the state law enforcement agency, are setting up the equipment this month on I-65 in Chilton County, near milepost 209 at the Walnut Creek Bridge replacement project. A vehicle caught going over 10 mph above the posted limit while workers are on site can draw a $250 civil fine.

The ticket never reaches the driver at the roadside. ALEA mails it to the registered owner of the vehicle. It is a civil matter: no criminal charge, no jail, no points on a driver license and no suspension or revocation. ALEA can also send a warning notice in place of a citation, and the agency has said it will announce the warning period and the exact date citations begin in the coming weeks.

What the Pilot Covers and Where

The Alabama Work Zone Safety Act, Act 2026-475, started life as Senate Bill 341. Sen. Josh Carnley and Rep. Mike Kirkland sponsored it, and Gov. Kay Ivey signed it in April 2026. The law authorizes a pilot at a single work zone on an interstate, and the pilot sits at the Walnut Creek Bridge replacement project. ALDOT runs the transportation and work zone side. ALEA reviews the evidence, issues civil citations and runs the hearing process.

Work zone crashes make the case for the pilot. Alabama recorded 2,543 crashes in highway work zones in 2025, including 11 fatalities and 709 injuries. ALDOT says fatal construction zone crashes have declined alongside a rise in crashes that injure workers.

At the signing, Ivey tied the pilot to road building across the state. “Currently in Alabama, there is roadwork ongoing in all 67 counties, including on our major roadways. It is just critical that we all drive carefully through work zones,” Ivey said. “I was proud to put my signature on the Alabama Work Zone Safety Act that will help us improve safety around our roadwork and the enforcement mechanisms going forward. As we are rebuilding Alabama in all 67 counties, let’s keep the men and women doing the hard work, as well as our fellow motorists and ourselves, safe!”

Carnley described the aim in terms of both workers and drivers. “The Alabama Work Zone Safety Act is about protecting the men and women who work hard each and every day to keep our roads safe and functional,” Carnley said. “The Alabama Work Zone Safety Act gives us a smart, data-driven approach to improving safety in some of the most dangerous areas on our roads while holding reckless drivers accountable. I appreciate my colleagues in the Legislature for their support in advancing this measure and thank Governor Ivey for her leadership in signing this important legislation into law.”

Kirkland made the case for the cameras as a way to slow traffic. “Our highway workers deserve to return home safely at the end of every workday, and this law will help make that happen,” Kirkland said. “By implementing innovative tools to slow drivers down in work zones, we are taking a meaningful step toward preventing tragic accidents and saving lives. I am grateful to my colleagues in the Legislature for their support and to Governor Ivey for her continued commitment to public safety across Alabama.”

What Triggers the $250 and Who Gets the Notice

The trigger is a speed above the posted limit by more than 10 mph. A driver at 11 mph over crosses the line, and a driver at exactly 10 mph over does not. The notice prints the speed the camera recorded next to the maximum speed that applied at the spot.

Only part of the day counts toward a ticket. The act defines an active work zone as a stretch of road that ALDOT has designated, with workers present, traffic control devices in place and at least two warning signs posted 500 feet or more before the entrance, telling drivers that photo enforcement is running and that a violation brings a fine. ALDOT adds that the system screens its records and passes them to ALEA only for periods when workers are present. Records from any other hour never enter the citation process.

The equipment records an image of the vehicle, an image of the rear license plate and the speed. If the plate image is too unclear to identify the owner, and ALEA cannot establish the owner another way, the law bars the agency from issuing a notice. When the plate is readable, ALEA must mail the notice within 30 days of the recorded violation. A car registered in Alabama gets it at the address in state registration records. A car registered in another state or country gets it at the owner’s address in that jurisdiction’s records, so an out-of-state plate does not close the file.

The notice carries the date, time and location, the recorded speed, copies of the images, the amount due, the payment deadline and the steps for contesting, and it states that a recorded image counts as evidence. The fine is a flat $250, and once a penalty is ordered a court cannot raise it, cut it or excuse it. The money splits evenly between ALEA and ALDOT, and each agency spends its half solely on running the program, with any remainder going to a dedicated work zone safety fund.

The Warning Period and the Dates Still to Come

ALDOT’s timeline has three marks so far. Equipment goes in this November. Civil citations begin no earlier than Nov. 16, which is a Monday. ALEA will announce the warning period and the exact first date of citations in the coming weeks. The statute calls for a gradual rollout and bars full enforcement before Nov. 16.

Until ALEA names a date, nobody outside the agency can say when tickets start. ALEA decides, using its own discretion, whether a recorded violation produces a warning notice or a citation, and a warning notice takes the place of the citation. Other cities phase cameras in too: Los Angeles speed cameras are already live, with fines starting in December.

Once citations start, the clock runs in the driver’s favor. A notice must go out within 30 days of the violation, and the payment date on it must fall at least 60 days after the notice is issued. Take the earliest possible case: a notice issued on Monday, Nov. 16, 2026 cannot demand payment before Jan. 15, 2027.

The end date is less settled. ALDOT states that the pilot runs through September 2028 unless the Legislature continues it. The act repeals its own sections on Sept. 30, 2028, and the statute also says the pilot continues through the completion of all work in the designated work zone, so a bridge project that finishes early could end the program early. The first set of results is due at the Legislature by March 1, 2027.

How to Contest the Notice

A notice leaves three paths. Pay the $250 by the date printed on it. Ask for an administrative hearing by following the instructions on the notice. Or do nothing, which is the costly choice: failing to pay or contest on time counts as an admission of liability for the full fine.

The hearing takes place online or over the phone. A hearing officer decides whether the vehicle was driven in violation of the act and whether the registered owner is liable. The process is informal, and the officer issues a final order afterward. An owner found liable has 60 days from the hearing to pay. Court costs and fees come on top of the $250 for anyone found liable at a hearing and for anyone who requests a hearing and then fails to show up.

The law lists seven defenses, and the owner carries the burden of proving one. They cover a driver following an officer’s lawful order, an emergency vehicle, a stolen vehicle or one driven without the owner’s consent, a stolen plate on another car, a notice sent to someone who did not own the vehicle then, a notice sent to someone who was not driving, and a driver cited by an officer for another violation in the same moment.

A rental company that receives a notice can follow the instructions on it to name the person who rented the car at the time, and the act defines the owner of a rented vehicle as the renter.

The final order can go to court. A notice of appeal to the Alabama circuit court must be filed within 30 days after the final order, and filing it stays enforcement of the penalty. Each camera system needs an annual calibration certificate from an independent laboratory. If an officer’s manual enforcement record and a camera record of the same vehicle conflict, the manual record prevails under ALDOT’s current procedures.

What Drivers Can Do Before Nov. 16

Slow down in the zone and treat the signs as the last warning. They sit at least 500 feet ahead of the entrance. ALDOT also asks drivers to stay alert and leave extra room behind the vehicle ahead. Citations come only from periods when workers are present.

Chris Moon, an ALDOT construction worker with more than 20 years on North Alabama roads, said the stakes are personal. “I lost a friend in one of these things because they were racing for a lane closer, you know, trying to speed up. Just take an extra second, especially when you come through there for, you know, in work zones, to take that extra time and think about that,” Moon said.

Keep the vehicle registration address current. ALEA mails the notice to the address in the registration records, and the 60 day payment period counts from the day the notice is issued. If a notice arrives, read the date, time, location, speed and images before paying and check them against your own trip. If the facts match, pay by the deadline. If they do not, follow the hearing instructions before the date passes.

Watch for the ALEA announcement: the first weeks can bring warning notices in place of fines. ALDOT’s Work Zone Safety Act page carries the current FAQ. Drivers who want to compare can see how West Philadelphia speed cameras now issue $100 to $150 tickets on Route 13.

Reviewed by Preetam Gadekar

Sources

• ALDOT News Hub: Work Zone Safety Act pilot program being implemented on I-65 in Chilton County
• ALDOT News Hub: Work Zone Safety Act
• Alabama Legislature: SB341 Enrolled
• Alabama Political Reporter: Gov. Ivey signs Alabama Work Zone Safety Act

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