The same international company under fire for mismanaging traffic cameras in the District of Columbia is overseeing the system Montgomery County began using this week. The county awarded Affiliated Computer Services a three-year contract worth $1.5 million in January after a competitive bidding process.

ACS has endured criticism for letting speed and red-light cameras fall into disrepair when the company oversaw D.C.’s system. According to American Traffic Solutions, which recently replaced ACS as the city’s camera-system vendor, 27 of the 50 cameras installed to catch red-light runners were broken or missing, two of 10 camera units that nab speeders were not certified, and flash bulbs were not replaced, which rendered the cameras ineffective at night and during bad weather.

Most of the inoperable camera sites have been out of service for at least a month, American Traffic Solutions said, with some sites being down for six months or longer.

Montgomery launched its camera system Monday, becoming the first Maryland jurisdiction to use the devices to catch speeding drivers. ACS will only issue warnings during the first 30 days of the cameras’ operation. After that, violators will face $40 fines.

This story continues below
Advertisement

“We have just started, but everything is fine so far,” Montgomery County Police Department spokeswoman Lucille Braun said. ACS’ management of D.C.’s parking meters has also been criticized. A city auditor’s report last month found that D.C. government has spent $2.2 million (33 percent more) to hire ACS than it would have had the work been performed in-house.

The audit also reported that 35 percent of the meters could not be accounted for. A company spokeswoman did not return a phone message left Wednesday afternoon seeking comment.