Safe Speed Forums

Report reveals speed cameras can reduce deaths by 63%
By Gavin Stuart - 27 July 2011 15:18 GMT
The positive effects of cameras on road safety have been highlighted by government figures.

Report reveals speed cameras can reduce deaths by 63%
Camera: Majority of Scots support their use. Pic: © STV

Speed cameras can reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on Scotland's roads by as much as 63%, government figures have revealed.
A report from the Scottish Safety Camera Programme found that traffic-related deaths and injuries had fallen from an average of 341 to 127 over the past three years at sites where fixed or mobile speed cameras were located.
The largest change was at mobile camera sites where the average number of people killed or seriously injured has fallen from 232 to 79 per year - a reduction of 66%.

Average speeds and the number of people exceeding the speed limit at safety camera sites are also generally lower following a period of enforcement, the report found.

Meanwhile, the number of people issued with a fixed penalty after being caught exceeding the speed limit or running a red-light at a safety camera site has halved in the last four years and reduced by over 60% in the past six years.

Nearly 70% of the 4010 respondents to the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey 2009-10 agreed that safety cameras help discourage dangerous driving and prevent accidents, while 80% think that people should see the use of road safety cameras as "a good thing".
And despite over half of motorists believing that cameras are "an easy way to make money," 76% of people agree with their use.

The report also found that females and those living in urban areas had the most favourable attitude towards cameras, while males and those living in rural locations tended to be less positive.