From the Belfast Telegraph
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/ ... 35462.html4,000 drivers caught by a single speed camera in one year, report reveals
Published
08/08/2015 | 08:52
More than 4,000 motorists were caught by a single speed camera in just one year, it has been revealed.
In total more than 40,000 people were found to be speeding on Northern Ireland's roads in 2014.
The number of detections has more than tripled in the last decade. The details are revealed in a report published yesterday by the Road Safety Partnership.
Key findings include:
•Last year 42,429 people were caught speeding or running a red light during 2014;
•That is down 12.2% on 2013, but three and a half times the number recorded a decade ago;
•Around a quarter of all speeders (11,484) were caught by just four cameras;
•The highest speed - 110mph - was recorded on the A29 Cookstown to Moneymore road.
One speeder was caught doing 73mph in a 30mph zone.
Analysis of the statistics shows that the most prolific speed camera is situated on the Antrim Road, a major arterial route running through north Belfast..
Last year some 4,229 motorists were caught breaching its 30mph speed limit. It is one of four fixed cameras operating permanently in the Belfast area and is close to several schools and a medical centre. The Saintfield Road camera, situated between Belfast and Carryduff, clocked a further 2,818 drivers. It previously had the dubious record of the highest number of detections.
Meanwhile, the Springhill Road in west Belfast had 2,397 detections. That camera sits outside a major police station but still manages to catch the unwary or inattentive.
The Upper Newtownards Road in East Belfast clocked another 2,040 speeding drivers.
Mobile cameras also did their part in catching offenders.
The Shore Road from Eden into Belfast was a main target with just under 2,330 speeders caught. Other speeding hotspots included the Culmore Road in Londonderry with just under 1,400 tickets, the Dungiven Road in Co Londonderry with 1,637 and the Glenshane Road in Maghera with 1,339.
The huge rise in speeding detections over the last decade is mainly because the threshold at which a driver could be detected speeding was lowered in June 2010 and April 2012.
Meanwhile, the drop in speeding detections from last year has been linked to newly-appointed camera operators who are still undergoing training.
Yesterday's report will reopen the debate on speed cameras, which some view as a money-making tool which does little to improve road safety. However, the PSNI said they are an essential weapon in addressing a key cause of serious accidents.