The Arizona Department of Public Safety announced yesterday that it would pay an Australian company $28.75 for every ticket it is able to issue on state highways. By September 26, Melbourne-based ticket vendor Redflex will activate what will soon become the largest speed camera operation in the United States. Governor Janet Napolitano (D) commissioned the program to generate $165 million in revenue from the $165 citations. Redflex hopes this bottom line inspires other states to follow.

"We fully expect this program to provide a benchmark for the role speed enforcement will play in traffic safety in North America in the next decade," Redflex Traffic Systems CEO Karen Finley said in a statement to Australian investors.

Redflex already operates two speed vans on behalf of state government, but the new contract expands the program to allow up to 200 automated ticketing machines. The company plans to blanket the state with 40 mobile speed vans, 10 mobile red light camera systems, 90 fixed speed cameras and 30 cameras capable of simultaneously issuing tickets in two directions.

To help minimize voter backlash against the program, lawmakers last month eliminated points for these photo tickets, ensuring drivers would avoid insurance penalties and license suspensions. Early deployment plans also show out-of-state motorists will be a prime target. According to a state police news release, the placement of cameras on Interstate 10 west of Phoenix will issue tickets to "commercial and non-commercial vehicle traffic from California." Each highway patrol district will have at least two mobile speed vans to place in high-volume locations. State police have already dropped the speed that triggers a citation from 11 MPH to 10 MPH over the limit.

Illinois was first to deploy a speed camera program statewide.