Cleveland police officers need to increase traffic enforcement around the city, according to some council members.
Figures provided to council by Cleveland Police show a 56% reduction in traffic-related fines collected between 2016 and 2025, from $4.2 million in 2016 to $1.9 million in 2025.
During a safety committee meeting Wednesday, Councilmember Mike Polensek told police officials he hears about traffic issues from residents more than anything else and wants a strategy to address the issue.
鈥淚'm not going to speed in the Village of Bratenahl because I'm going to get a ticket,鈥� Polensek said. 鈥淚'm not going to speed through Strongsville. I鈥檓 not going to speed through Westlake, and I could go down the list of cities who put an emphasis on traffic enforcement, because that's the way they believe they set the tone in their communities.鈥�
Public Safety Director Wayne Drummond offered several explanations for the reduction in fines, including changes in culture that have led to more lawbreaking, more lenient courts and officers spending time on de-escalation and community engagement at each call for service, leaving less time for other tasks.
He also said it鈥檚 not a new concern, going back to his days as a commander in the Fifth District.
鈥淲e had a lot of issues, traffic was one of the main concerns I received back in 2007, 2008, 2009, I could go on,鈥� Drummond said.
The city has 22 officers in its traffic bureau and two patrol cars dedicated to traffic enforcement in each of the city鈥檚 five police districts. Each patrol vehicle can stop people for traffic violations, Drummond said, but their first priority is responding to calls to 911.
In 2015, Cleveland Police changed their vehicle pursuit policy to limit pursuits to violent felonies or suspected OVI鈥檚. The department does not keep a record of vehicles fleeing after an officer attempts to pull them over for a traffic violation, but Drummond said the administration would be open to creating new laws to crack down on those drivers.
鈥淚f a car fails to stop for a traffic stop, but we have a license plate, I believe that it should be a priority, sometime in the next 48 hours to go to that address and either tow or boot that car,鈥� said Councilmember Charles Slife. 鈥淎nd if grandma is upset because her grandson was driving the car, and it wasn't her, then she can file a police report against her grandson or whack him in the back of the head or something.鈥�
Slife also proposed revisiting the issue of traffic cameras in Cleveland.
In 2014, Cleveland voters passed a charter amendment that from the city by requiring a police officer be present at each camera location to personally issue any tickets.
鈥淚 hear a lot from my residents that there's real buyer's remorse on that,鈥� Slife said. 鈥淪o, I think that's something that we should look into and I think it's something that the administration is in discussions about as well.鈥�
A spokesperson for Mayor Justin Bibb did not provide a comment on whether the city will pursue a change to the 2014 charter amendment.
Drummond told council the city is working to identify streets and intersections with the highest need for enforcement. Traffic calming measures and more officers could be added to those parts of the city.
Polensek stressed the need for police officers to fully address the problem.
鈥淚 can鈥檛 put speed tables on St. Clair Avenue," Polensek said. "I can鈥檛 put them on Euclid Avenue. I can鈥檛 put them on Lakeshore Boulevard. EMS (Emergency Medical Services) objects to these speed tables because if you have a patient with a back injury and they go over these speed tables鈥o speed tables have gone on residential streets.鈥�
But Polensek added he gets dozens of requests for speed tables just in his ward and there鈥檚 not enough funding to fulfill the requests.
