Wake County schools aren't yet able to install speed safety cameras in school zones, eight months after a bill passed to allow it.

A number of steps need to be taken at the state and local levels to make them possible, state Department of Transportation officials told WRAL News, shortly before the Wake school board discussed the possibility at a committee meeting.

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School board members on Tuesday expressed mixed interest in having the cameras, including additional cameras on school bus stop arms. Board members both liked the idea of using the cameras to keep students safer, but hesitated over the cameras' similarity to unpopular red-light cameras that have been removed in many municipalities.

"That program was not something that was liked among many citizens," Board Member Toshiba Rice said.

Superintendent Robert Taylor noted that he believes people would feel differently about cameras designed to protect students, than they did about red-light cameras.

"It is about changing behavior," he said, "anything to mitigate people passing stopped school buses."

Board Chairman Tyler Swanson said he's glad the district could move forward with cameras, especially as they encourage walking to school.

"I do think this is something that we should address and move forward with, as long as there's partnerships," Swanson said.

It's a concern for many parents at schools along busy roads.

"People drive by across that crosswalk so fast, and so it's treacherous," said Samantha Coutoure, a parent of Dillard Drive Magnet Middle School students. "We get nervous."

Her children walk to school and use the crosswalk, but she says more can be done to slow down drivers.

"I think a camera would really help people slow down and pay closer attention," Coutoure said.

The state Department of Transportation told WRAL News it's advising schools not to move forward with the cameras until groups that are tasked with approving the camera systems and establishing standards for them complete that process.

Additionally, towns and counties must pass ordinances allowing the use of the cameras to issue speeding citations.

Wake would need a county ordinance, followed by an interlocal agreement with the county and the sheriff's department to activate the program, said Neal Ramee, an attorney for the school board. A law enforcement officer would ultimately need to view the camera footage before any citations would be issued.

The North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission and the Secretary of Public Safety are charged with approving the camera systems and establishing the standards for calibrating them and ensuring they are accurate. That has not been completed.

Senate Bill 391, which contains 18 pages of transportation regulation changes, establishes schools' ability to speed safety cameras in school zones, pending those other requirements.

The bill came after a May 2025 North Carolina Supreme Court decision overturned a lower-court ruling that had made the camera programs infeasible, Ramee said. A lower court has ruled the programs couldn't proceed unless 90% of the revenues from citations went back to the school system. But 10% of revenues was not enough to fund the equipment and other costs of operating, Ramee said.

Still, Ramee and others noted how eager businesses are to get into the mix, already reaching out to the school system.

"There's some people that are pretty aggressive in marketing these programs," Ramee said. "They all want your business. Somebody will make money off of this."

Federal regulators say speed-zone safety cameras are effective tools to reduce crashes.

Half of the states have speed safety camera programs, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

The Wake County school board is set for an update Tuesday on how the district might take advantage of a new state law that allows it to enforce school-zone speed limits via the installation of cameras.

A new North Carolina law -- passed in the state Department of Transportation omnibus bill, Senate Bill 391 of 2025 -- authorizes the cameras.

Neal Ramee, a Tharrington Smith attorney who advises the school board, is set to present an update on research and questions regarding the speed-zone cameras, as well as school bus stop-arm cameras. Stop-arm cameras to detect illegal passing attempts were first authorized in a 2009 state law.

The district has 27 stop-arm cameras and is adding five more.

The district has not committed to implementing the speed-zone cameras, but is exploring it.

It's unclear how much each camera would cost.