About DMV Camera Watch

We read government databases so you don't have to.

What This Is

DMV Camera Watch maps every automated traffic enforcement camera across the DC, Maryland, and Virginia metro area — speed cameras, red light cameras, work zone cameras, and mobile enforcement units. That's over 1,755 cameras across 12 jurisdictions, updated daily from public government data sources.

For each camera, we show its location, estimated annual revenue, violation trends, live nearby traffic feeds, and a healthy dose of editorial commentary. All the data is public. We just made it usable.

Why This Exists

Every jurisdiction in the DMV publishes camera data somewhere — buried in Socrata portals, scattered across ArcGIS servers, hidden in PDFs, or simply not published at all. If you wanted to know how many cameras are near your commute, or how much revenue your county's camera program generates, you'd need to query a half-dozen government APIs, normalize the data yourself, and do a lot of math.

Nobody has time for that. So we did it.

DMV Camera Watch isn't anti-camera or pro-camera. We're pro-transparency. When governments operate automated enforcement programs that generate millions of dollars in revenue, the public should have easy access to the data behind those programs. That's it. That's the mission.

How the Data Works

Camera locations come from official government sources: Socrata open data portals, ArcGIS datasets, municipal websites, and public records requests. Revenue estimates are calculated by multiplying reported violation counts by the standard fine amount for each jurisdiction and camera type. These are estimates, not official figures.

We refresh data daily for jurisdictions with open APIs and weekly for those requiring manual updates. Live traffic camera feeds come from CHART (Maryland), DDOT (DC), and Montgomery County TMC.

Who We Are

DMV Camera Watch is built and operated by one person in the DMV who thinks public data should be public. Not a startup. Not funded. Just a side project that grew into something useful.

Coverage

We currently cover: Montgomery County, Washington DC, Prince George's County, Arlington County, Fairfax County, City of Fairfax, and Alexandria. Baltimore City coverage is in progress. If your jurisdiction isn't covered yet and you have leads on data sources, let us know.

Pro Subscription

The full camera map, all violation data, and all revenue estimates are free and always will be. DMV Camera Watch Pro ($4.99/month) adds route monitoring, commute alerts, and an ad-free experience. One subscription keeps the lights on and the data flowing.