Bellevue, WA Mobility & Curb Rules: Red-Light Cameras (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- BCC Chapter 11.49
- Stoplight/speed fine
- $124.00
- School-zone fine
- $248.00
- Sign notice required
- 30 days before activation
- Camera cap
- 1 extra per 10,000 population
- Reduced-penalty groups
- Public assistance / WIC recipients
Summary
Bellevue runs automated cameras for red-light, school-zone, hospital-zone, park-zone and work-zone speeding under Chapter 11.49. Fines run $124 for a stoplight or speed hit and $248 in a school zone, with cameras barred from freeway on-ramps and from capturing driver or passenger faces.
Automated traffic safety cameras may not be used on an on-ramp to a limited access facility as defined in RCW 47.52.010. Automated traffic safety cameras may only record images of the vehicle and vehicle license plate and only while an infraction is occurring. The image must not reveal the face of the driver or the faces of passengers in the vehicle... The fine for a stoplight infraction issued under this chapter shall be $124.00... The fine for a school zone speed infraction issued under this chapter shall be $248.00. The fines for all other speed infractions issued under this chapter shall be $124.00.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 6929, passed July 14, 2026).
Full Breakdown
010 authorizes the city to use automated traffic safety cameras to catch stoplight violations at intersections of two or more arterials, speeding in hospital, park, school and school-walk zones, work-zone speeding when workers are present, railroad grade-crossing violations, and, above the base list, one additional camera per 10,000 population at locations shown by a multifactor safety analysis to carry higher crash risk. 011 sets hard limits on that authority: notices cannot be issued to the registered owner of a marked fire engine or a Department of Health-licensed ambulance running lights and siren, cameras cannot be placed on a limited-access freeway on-ramp, and any image captured may only show the vehicle and its plate while the infraction is occurring, never the face of the driver or a passenger. 010(C). 015, and the city must publish an annual report on crashes, infractions issued, and how camera revenue was spent. 020's procedure.
Violations & Fines
BCC 11.49.080 sets the fine for a stoplight infraction at $124.00 and for any other camera-detected speed infraction at $124.00, except a school-zone speed infraction, which carries a $248.00 fine; both figures can be adjusted for inflation starting January 1, 2029. Registered owners on public assistance or in the WIC program qualify for a 50 percent reduction on a first camera violation and on any repeat violation issued within 21 days of the first. Camera infractions are processed the same way as parking infractions and do not appear on the registered owner's driving record.
Frequently Asked Questions
What locations can Bellevue put red-light or speed cameras?
How much is a camera ticket in Bellevue?
Can Bellevue's traffic cameras photograph the driver's face?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bellevue
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Red-Light Cameras in Nearby Cities
How other cities in King County handle red-light cameras.