How do you feel about the installation of speed cameras along Barrington roads? 

Frank Lee likes the idea. The retired mail carrier said he has 20 years of evidence supporting the need for speed cameras. The longtime Barrington resident spoke in favor of speed cameras during the public comment portion of the recent town council meeting. 

The council is considering installing speed cameras around the local schools in an effort to slow vehicle traffic and make roads safer. Officials are expected to discuss the issue at an upcoming council meeting. 

Lee was more than happy to offer firsthand testimony about speeding cars. He recalled one specific incident a few years ago. Lee said he had paused his route and was speaking with a local police officer. Lee said the two of them were on the side of Sowams Road, a few hundred feet south of the school, when a vehicle zoomed past, heading north.

Lee said the police officer quickly pursued the vehicle: He clocked it at 72 miles per hour, Lee told council members. 

The retired mail carrier also told councilors that his mail truck was rear-ended by a distracted driver in Hampden Meadows.

Lee said speed cameras are a deterrent. He said a speed camera located in front of East Providence High School clocked him traveling 31 miles per hour. He received a $50 ticket in the mail. 

“I don’t go over the speed limit in front of East Providence High School any longer,” Lee said. “It won’t slow down every driver, but maybe it makes the drivers from out of town respect us a little longer.”

Lee said cars speed down Kent Street also. 

“For the safety of our mothers and their children, I think speed cameras are a must,” Lee said.