Safety camera activated for citations starting November 1

HONOLULU – The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) advises motorists that the safety camera systems at 10 downtown Honolulu intersections will begin issuing  citations for high-risk speed behaviors on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025.

Cameras at these locations have been issuing citations for red-light running violations since November of 2022 and have been issuing warnings for speeds above the posted limit since March 2025.

Since March, HDOT has sent over 500,000 warnings. The final batch of 21,000 warnings will be sent this coming week to the registered owners of the vehicles captured on camera.

For more information, visit https://hidot.hawaii.gov/highways/safety-camera-systems/

Quick Facts on Hawai‘i’s Safety Cameras

1. What is the process for safety camera system citations?

• The incident (i.e., running a red light or speeding) occurs and is captured by the system as still images and a 12-second video.
• Data transfers to the vendor’s processing center for preliminary screening.
• A local reviewer (e.g., county police or a facsimile) checks the images, data and speed captured by the system, to make the determination if a violation has occured.
• Approved violations are queued for printing and are mailed within 10 calendar days of the initial incident.
• The registered owner of the vehicle can review the data on the online portal after receiving the citation in the mail. Payments, questions, evidence explaining or denying the violation, as well as court hearing requests may be submitted through the portal.

2. Where do the fines go? Does the vendor get a portion of the fine?

All fines collected shall be deposited into the automated enforcement systems program special fund. The fund can only be used for the establishment, implementation, operation, oversight, repair and maintenance of the safety camera systems. The vendor is not paid based on the number of citations given by the system.

3. Can the system take a photo of the driver and cite the driver instead?

No, due to privacy concerns Hawaiʻi law specifies the responsibility of the registered owner of the motor vehicle for violations captured by safety camera systems.

4. What do I do if I receive a citation for a vehicle I no longer own?

Individuals may contest the citation in writing by sending in a copy of the submitted Notice of Transfer and proof of submission (receipt, email confirmation, etc.).

5. How do I know the letter I got isn’t a scam?

No action is required for the warnings. A website https://www.violationinfo.com/ is provided on the warning to verify the event. A secondary warning has been mailed to the registered owner of vehicles with multiple events. No payment is needed for any of the warnings and it will not be reflected in your driver history or traffic abstract.

For citations, a sample citation can be viewed here. If your citation doesn’t match, or requests payment through a website that is not https://etraffic.ehawaii.gov or https://www.violationinfo.com/, it is a scam. Payment for fines can also be made over the phone to 1-800-679-5949 or by mail to:

Traffic Violations Bureau

District Court of the First Circuit

1111 Alakea Street

Honolulu, HI 96813

6. What’s the threshhold?

For red-light running violations, a citation is generated if a vehicle goes through the intersection after the light has turned red. The system will not generate a ticket if you are in the intersection when the light has turned red.

For speed, HDOT is targeting the highest-risk behaviors (e.g., vehicles traveling more than 11 mph over the posted speed limit).

7. What is the fine for a ticket received through the safety cameras?

The fine for a red-light violation is $97. Those choosing to pay via credit card may be assessed a processing fee.

The fine for a speed violation may range between $167 – $317 depending on how much over the posted speed limit the vehicle was observed going.

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