What Rhode Island law says about red light cameras and school-zone speed cameras

Rhode Island General Laws title 31 (webserver.rilegislature.gov, retrieved 29 Oct 2026) has chapter 31-41.2, “Automated Traffic Violation Monitoring Systems”, for cameras at traffic signals, and chapter 31-41.3, the “Automated School-Zone-Speed-Enforcement System Act of 2016”, for speed cameras near schools. This page quotes sections of both chapters, Public Law 2026, chapter 268, and a City of Providence news page. It does not apply them to any notice. Confirm what your paper says.

A Rhode Island speeding summons that an officer hands to the driver is a different paper. See What a Rhode Island speeding ticket is.

US overview: What a mailed camera notice is. Contrast: What an NYC camera notice is · Three different California camera notices · Florida Notice of Violation vs Uniform Traffic Citation · Maryland school-zone speed monitoring vs SafeZones work-zone cameras · Colorado automated camera notices: CDOT Speed Enforcement vs local AVIS · Washington automated camera notices: local programs vs WSDOT work-zone cameras · Virginia automated camera notices: photo-speed, red light, and school-bus cameras · Tennessee automated camera notices: unmanned ASE, school-zone / S-curve speed, and school-bus cameras · Pennsylvania automated camera notices: red light, work-zone speed, Philadelphia speed, and school-bus cameras · Illinois automated camera notices: red light, Chicago safety-zone speed, school-bus stop-arm, and railroad-crossing cameras, plus state work-zone speed camera citations · New Mexico city camera notices: Albuquerque ASE and Santa Fe STOP speed cameras · Iowa automated speed camera citations: Iowa DOT-permitted fixed and mobile systems under Iowa Code chapter 321P · Texas red-light camera and city speed camera prohibitions: what Transportation Code chapter 707 and § 542.2035 say · Alabama camera notices: the state work-zone speed camera pilot under Act 2026-475 and city red-light camera local acts · Louisiana camera citations: what R.S. 32:43 to 32:49 say about school-zone speed cameras and red light cameras · Oregon camera citations: what ORS 810.434 to 810.444 say about city photo red light, city photo radar, and highway work-zone photo radar.

The General Laws text below is quoted from the Rhode Island General Assembly’s site as shown when retrieved on 29 Oct 2026.

What § 31-41.2-3, as amended in 2026, says about red light cameras

Section 31-41.2-3 was amended by P.L. 2026, ch. 268 (2026 S 3228). The act page shows “Enacted 06/26/2026”, and its Section 2 states: “This act shall take effect upon passage.” The text in this section is quoted from that act. As printed in P.L. 2026, ch. 268, § 31-41.2-3(a) states: “The state department of transportation and the municipalities of this state are hereby authorized to install and operate automated traffic violation detection systems.” It also states: “For purposes of this chapter an automated traffic violation detection system means a system with one or more motor vehicle sensors which produces images of motor vehicles being operated in violation of traffic signal laws.” Subsection (a) has other sentences that this page does not cover. Subsection (b) states: “No automated traffic violation detection system shall be installed pursuant to this section which has not been approved for use by the director of the state department of transportation.” Subsection (f) states: “Use of the images or video captured by an automated traffic violation monitoring system shall be restricted to enforcement of the traffic violation and shall not be used to track individuals or vehicles for any purpose.” That is the act’s statement.

What § 31-41.2-4 says about red light camera summonses

§ 31-41.2-4(a) states: “A summons may be issued by an officer solely based on evidence obtained by use of an automated traffic-violation-detection system.” It continues: “All summons issued based on evidence obtained from an automated traffic-violation-detection system shall be issued within twenty-eight (28) days of the violation.” § 31-41.2-4(c): “It shall be sufficient to commence a prosecution based on evidence obtained from an automated traffic-violation-detection system that a copy of the summons and supporting documentation be mailed to the address of the registered owner kept on file by the registry of motor vehicles pursuant to § 31-3-34.” It continues: “For purposes of this section, the date of issuance shall be the date of mailing.” § 31-41.2-4(f): “In addition to the summons, the following information shall be attached to the summons:”

(1) “Copies of two (2) or more photographs, or microphotographs, or other recorded images taken as proof of the violation;”
(2) “A signed statement by a trained law enforcement officer that, based on inspection of recorded images, the motor vehicle was being operated in violation of § 31-13-4;”
(3) “A statement that recorded images are evidence of a violation of this chapter; and”
(4) “A statement that the person who receives a summons under this chapter may either pay the civil penalty in accordance with the provisions of § 31-41.1-3, or elect to stand trial for the alleged violation.”

That is the statute’s statement. The chapter 31-41.2 sections quoted on this page do not state a fine amount, and this page does not state one for red light cameras.

What § 31-41.2-6 and § 31-41.2-7.1 say about the registered owner and the nature of violations

§ 31-41.2-6(a): “The registered owner of the motor vehicle shall be primarily responsible in all prosecutions brought pursuant to the provisions of this chapter except as otherwise provided in this section.” § 31-41.2-6(c): “The lessee of a leased vehicle shall be considered the owner of a motor vehicle for purposes of this section.”

§ 31-41.2-7.1 begins: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law:” § 31-41.2-7.1(a): “No violation for which a civil penalty is imposed under this chapter shall be considered a moving violation, nor shall be included on the driving record of the person on whom the liability is imposed, nor shall it be used for insurance rating purposes in providing motor vehicle insurance coverage until there is a final adjudication of the violation.” § 31-41.2-7.1(b): “Impositions of a penalty pursuant to this chapter shall not be deemed a criminal conviction of an owner or operator.” That is the statute’s statement. This page does not say how that statement applies to a particular citation, license, or insurance policy.

What § 31-41.3-3 and § 31-41.3-4 say about school-zone speed cameras

§ 31-41.3-3(a) states that “The state department of transportation and the municipalities of this state are hereby authorized to operate” automated school-zone-speed-enforcement systems. § 31-41.3-3(b)(3) defines a school zone as “anywhere within a one-quarter (¼) mile radius of any type of school in the state of Rhode Island.”

§ 31-41.3-4 begins: “No automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall be used in the state of Rhode Island unless the system has been approved and certified for use in the state by the director of the department of transportation.” Among its requirements: (1) “All automated school-zone-speed-enforcement systems operated under this chapter shall record the speed of vehicles within plus or minus one mile per hour of the actual speed.” Paragraph (4) ends: “The automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall be operational only from seven o’clock a.m. (7:00 a.m.) to six o’clock p.m. (6:00 p.m.) on school days of the promulgated one-hundred-eighty-day (180) school calendar year adopted in the applicable community.” That is the statute’s statement.

What § 31-41.3-8 says about school-zone speed camera citations

§ 31-41.3-8(a) states: “Citations may be issued by an officer solely based on evidence obtained by use of an automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system.” It continues: “All citations issued based on evidence obtained from an automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system shall be issued within fourteen (14) days of the violation.” § 31-41.3-8(b): “It shall be sufficient to commence a prosecution based on evidence obtained from an automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system, provided that a copy of the citation and supporting documentation be mailed to the address of the registered owner kept on file by the registry of motor vehicles pursuant to § 31-3-34.” It continues: “For purposes of this section, the date of issuance shall be the date of mailing.” That is the statute’s statement.

The fourteen-day statement is in § 31-41.3-8, for chapter 31-41.3 school-zone speed cameras. The twenty-eight-day statement quoted above is in § 31-41.2-4, for chapter 31-41.2 cameras at traffic signals. This page does not say how either statement applies to a particular notice.

What § 31-41.3-15 and § 31-41.3-12 say about penalties and the nature of violations

§ 31-41.3-15(a): “Every person found to have violated the provisions of this chapter shall be fined fifty dollars ($50.00) for each offense; provided, however that for a period of thirty (30) days following the installation of any new automated school-zone-speed-enforcement system, a violation recorded by the system shall only be enforced by the issuance of a warning.” § 31-41.3-15(b): “A violation of this chapter shall not be considered a moving violation for purposes of the motorist’s driving record.” § 31-41.3-15(c): “Every three (3) years from the date of the motorist’s first offense under this chapter, the court shall expunge any automated school-zone-speed-enforcement violations during the preceding three-year (3) period.”

§ 31-41.3-12 begins: “Notwithstanding any other provision of law:” § 31-41.3-12(1): “No violation for which a civil penalty is imposed under this chapter shall be considered a moving violation; nor shall it be included on the driving record of the person on whom the liability is imposed; nor shall it be used for insurance rating purposes in providing motor vehicle insurance coverage.” That is the statute’s statement. This page does not say how that statement applies to a particular citation, license, or insurance policy.

The sentence quoted above for chapter 31-41.2, § 31-41.2-7.1(a), ends with the words “until there is a final adjudication of the violation.” The sentence quoted above for chapter 31-41.3, § 31-41.3-12(1), does not have those words. This page does not say how the two statements relate to each other or to a particular notice.

The City of Providence school-zone speed camera page

The City of Providence news page “School-Zone Speed Cameras to Begin Activation August 27” (providenceri.gov, dated August 26, 2025, retrieved 29 Oct 2026) states: “The cameras will operate on all school days, Monday through Friday from 7 AM to 6 PM.” It also states: “If a vehicle is determined by the PCU to be operating 11 mph or more over the speed limit, a violation will automatically be issued.” and “Each violation is reviewed by Providence Police officers and Modaxo, an outside vendor who manages and maintains the cameras.” On the amount, it states: “The first and each subsequent fine is $50.00.” Those are the city’s statements as of that August 2025 page, and they can change.

The 11 mph figure is the city’s statement on that page. The § 31-41.3 sections quoted above do not contain it. This page does not say whether Providence cameras operate in the 2026–27 school year, and it does not say whether other Rhode Island cities or towns use cameras.

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Sources retrieved 29 Oct 2026:

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Information on this page was last checked against official sources on November 2, 2026.