DONNA – Traffic warrants are out for thousands of drivers and the city of Donna is offering an amnesty program to help them.

For people who haven’t paid their traffic tickets there are subject to possibly be arrested.

Roel Perez waited at the Donna Municipal Court to pay his traffic violation.

“My ticket at the beginning, it was $184. On Friday, it was already $450-something,” he said.

Perez was stopped in April for using his cell phone in a school zone.

Donna City Clerk Irene Balderas said in a statement the violations go back to 2003.

The statement read:

“I suspect we have an increase of citations because we have more travelers coming in to our city with the new Donna/Rio Bravo bridge. The minority of these people live in Mexico and are low income, therefore we are not able to collect instantaneously. “

Donna city officials said there are more than a million dollars’ worth of active warrants filed in cabinets. They said some of the money is going to go back to the city and also to the state.

“Some of the money goes to fix the roads that we drive on. They got to get the money from somewhere,” Donna Police Chief Ruben Deleon said. “They get some of that money from our taxes, that money from fines and that money goes back and fix the roadways. When the money goes to the city, the city uses that money to buy cars, buy equipment, hire police officers.”

Deleon said people should comply and take advantage of their amnesty program.

“People have the opportunity to come to the municipal court. No one is going to get arrested… You just go by the municipal court and make arrangements with them to take care of the existing fine,” he explained.

Perez said he’s saving money.

“And with the amnesty, it’s going to be $300,” he said.

Perez hopes others pay their fines to help themselves and the entire community.

City officials said violators have until Feb. 28 to pay their traffic fines.

Certain fees will be waived if a person pays for their traffic violations during the amnesty period.

Balderas said the city will waive the failure to appear and violation of promise to appear. She said many people have several violations.

The city will also dismiss some other violations to reduce the cost in half.