The City of Oakland is cracking down on speeding with the launch of its new automated speed safety camera program.

The program starts with a 60-day warning period.

Oakland joins San Francisco as one of the seven California pilot cities implementing speed safety camera programs.

RELATED: How much revenue was made after 16K citations in 1 month since installation of SF speed cameras

“Traffic Safety is public safety. Too many Oakland families have lost loved ones due to traffic violence,” said Mayor Barbara Lee.

The cameras will be placed in 18 locations throughout the city.

They will take a picture of a license plate if a vehicle is going above 11 miles per hour and, until the 60 days ends, drivers will only get a warning.

“This is a chance for everyone to get accustomed to this new system before any fines are issued,” Lee said. “We want to change behavior and not just issue tickets.”

The vendor operating the program, Verra Mobility, is the same one operating the program in San Francisco.

“These are not surveillance cameras. These are cameras that are only used for the purpose of slowing folks down and saving lives,” said Wall Barnow with Verra Mobility. “The DOT is the one that operates this program, not law enforcement.”

RELATED: Where SF speed cameras are located, how much it will cost you if you’re caught speeding

The city says the cameras will only take pictures of license plates on speeding cars that trigger the cameras.

No videos or pictures of the windshield or the faces of drivers will be taken.

The city said data from the cameras is confidential and will not be shared unless required by law.

Following the warning period, if traffic citations are issued, fines will start at $50 for those going between 11-15 mph over the posted speed limit. The fine goes up to $100 between 16-25 mph, $200 for 26 mph or more and $500 for any vehicle going above 100 mph.

There are lower rates for low-income residents and those who receive public assistance like SNAP benefits.

The city said the citations are non-moving violations and that there will not be points on a driver’s license or impacts to insurance.

“This is not revenue generation,” said Josh Rowan, Director of Oakland’s Department of Transportation. “Speeding is a choice; if you don’t want the camera to send you a ticket, drive the speed limit.”

The 60-day warning period started on Wednesday. The City of Oakland will begin issuing speeding tickets in March.

If you’re on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live