The Ankeny Brief
If you got flashed at an intersection, or you're just wondering whether that camera on a pole is about to mail you a ticket, here's the straight answer for Ankeny - plus how it fits Iowa's newer traffic-camera law, and why Ankeny's Flock cameras are a different animal entirely.
No - Ankeny does not use speed cameras or red-light cameras. Traffic enforcement here is done by officers, not automated systems. (Des Moines does use speed cameras - that's usually the source of a metro camera ticket.) Ankeny does run Flock license-plate cameras, but those don't measure speed or issue tickets.
The Ankeny Police Department does not operate automated speed or red-light enforcement cameras. Its Traffic Unit - a sergeant and two officers - handles enforcement in person: targeted projects on speeding, impaired and distracted driving, and seat belts, plus follow-up on neighborhood traffic complaints. If a camera in Ankeny is watching the road, it's a Flock license-plate reader used for investigations, not a device that clocks your speed.
It almost certainly came from Des Moines, which operates fixed and mobile speed cameras. Check the return address and issuing city on the citation - Ankeny doesn't send automated traffic tickets.
Automated traffic enforcement used to be a patchwork across Iowa. That changed with House File 2681, signed in 2024 and effective July 1, 2024. The law requires any city that wants speed cameras on its roads to get a permit from the Iowa DOT, and it caps the fines cities can charge.
Ankeny wasn't among the cities that put automated speed cameras into service. For red-light cameras specifically, Iowa has no dedicated statute - and Ankeny operates none either way.
They look similar on a pole but do completely different jobs. We break down Ankeny's license-plate cameras - what they capture, how long the data's kept, and the privacy debate - in the full Flock cameras guide.
The Ankeny Brief is a free weekly email: city news you can actually use, no spin, plus what's happening this week. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
No. Ankeny doesn't use automated speed cameras, so any camera-based citation you receive came from a different city's program.
If it's in Ankeny, it's a Flock license-plate reader - it doesn't measure speed and doesn't issue tickets. It's an investigative tool, covered in our Flock guide.
It's possible - but under the 2024 law the city would first need Iowa DOT approval for specific locations. As of now, Ankeny operates none.
Flock cameras in Ankeny · Crime maps & public records · Ankeny by the numbers