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PHOENIX — Arizona motorists who ignore speed limits could soon be getting pictures of themselves in the mail — along with a nasty financial surprise.

The state Department of Public Safety has signed a contract with a Scottsdale firm to put two roving "photo radar" vans on state roads. DPS Lt. Bob Ticer said the vans will be operational within 60 days.

DPS commanders will place the units not only along freeways but also on various two-lane roads throughout the state, he said.

In both cases, the primary decision of where to put them will be based on the number of accidents. But Ticer said there also will be a focus on construction zones.

This new contract is just the beginning of what eventually will be a more comprehensive system of photo enforcement: DPS plans to award additional contracts, for more mobile vans as well as to set up fixed photo-radar units like the ones already in place along the Loop 101 freeway in Scottsdale.

The contract with Redflex Traffic Systems comes seven months after Gov. Janet Napolitano directed DPS to begin using photo radar to enforce the state's speeding laws. Napolitano said she was convinced by a nine-month project along the 101 freeway — operated by Redflex for the city of Scottsdale — that photo-radar cameras cut how fast motorists were driving.

Several legislators subsequently attempted to block photo radar on state roads until the plan could be reviewed by voters but were unable to gain the necessary votes for approval.

The idea of photo enforcement is not new. Several communities already have or are considering photo radar to cut speeds.

But this contract is different in one key respect: Ticer said Redflex will get a flat $3,940 a month for each of the vans. By contrast, most of the other contracts that cities have negotiated, including the one Redflex had with Scottsdale, give the company a share of each citation paid.

Ticer said the goal is not to raise money, either for the state or the contractor.

One issue still to be decided is exactly when a citation will be issued.

Individual police officers have discretion when to stop a vehicle or write a ticket. But a private company that only takes photos of speeding vehicles does not.

The photo-radar cameras used in the Loop 101 experiment were set to catch motorists whose speed was at least 11 miles per hour over the posted limit.

Ticer said that may be the standard for the new units. But he said the cutoff points will be examined on a case-by-case basis depending on where the units are set up and other factors.

For example, Ticer noted there are school-crossing zones on some state roads. He said it would be unreasonable to allow a driver to go up to 26 miles per hour in a 15 mph zone without getting a ticket.

Ticer said there are advantages to having speed limits enforced by a private company.

"Officers will be able to focus on violations in that particular area other than speed," Ticer said.

"They can be looking at the impaired driver or the reckless driver, and the folks following too close or making unsafe lane changes," he continued. "We look at this as just another tool to assist us in traffic enforcement to reduce those crashes."

The contract also requires that the company's vans be "hybrids," capable of being driven on something along with gasoline, as a method of keeping down pollution, said Michael Ferraresi, a spokesman for Redflex.

Redflex operates photo-radar units in Tempe, Chandler, Paradise Valley and Prescott Valley, as well as in more than 130 other communities around the country, Ferraresi said.

Find more transportation coverage, including the blog "Gridlocked" at www.azstarnet.com/transportation