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Adelphi resident Charles Lutz received a letter from the city of College Park in late November, saying a camera caught him speeding Nov. 18 on Metzerott Road. Four more letters arrived in the next few days, saying he was caught a second time on Nov. 18, then once a day on Nov. 19, 21 and 26, in all receiving five $40 tickets.

Lutz and his wife, Mary, were skeptical of the camera's location, just a few hundred feet east of where the road's speed limit changes from 40 to 30 mph. The camera photographs motorists going a minimum 42 mph — 12 mph faster than the 30 mph limit — and Lutz was going 43, 43, 43, 43 and 44 mph, according to his citations.

The city activated cameras at three locations starting Nov. 15, and issued more than 8,600 tickets in three weeks, nearly 8,000 of which came from the Metzerott Road device, located between Adelphi Road and University Boulevard in a half-mile-radius school zone surrounding the University of Maryland, College Park. While city officials have insisted their main priorities were to cut speeding and increase safety rather than to generate revenue, some motorists complain the camera is a strategically placed speed trap.

"It was a trap to catch people on purpose," Mary Lutz said. "A lot of people are furious about it. They're using [public safety] for an excuse to get money."

Bob Ryan, the city's public service director, said Dec. 7 that the city has received dozens of complaints about the camera. But Ryan defended its placement, saying the city made sure it had a clear sightline into the street, did not interfere with motorists' views and was not on private property —not seeking to put the camera in a spot where it would trick drivers.

The city placed "Photo Enforced" signs at the site shortly before the camera was installed, as required by state law, along with two non-mandatory signs to warn drivers of the changing speed limit. Ryan said the city informed drivers of the camera with signs and print and online advertisements, adding that speeding violations have been cut by about 80 percent since mid-November.

"The initial location was selected in consideration of the emphasis on public safety, to slow traffic in the residential section of the road where the posted speed limit is 30 mph," Ryan said in a Dec. 27 e-mail.

Lanham-based camera vendor Optotraffic receives 40 percent of the revenue on each ticket, while the city is allowed to keep the rest for road and public safety use, but cannot exceed revenue greater than 10 percent of its annual budget, or about $1.3 million. The city would have to issue about 54,000 tickets to reach that mark, and any remaining funds would then go to the state or Prince George's County.

City Councilman Marcus Afzali (Dist. 4) said city officials have heard some complaints, and will likely meet with members of the West College Park Citizens Association in late January or early February.

"The camera is working and slowing down people," Afzali said. "We're trying to achieve our objectives, which are representing the people in the city and trying to promote public safety."

dhill@gazette.net