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Speed Cameras: Cash Machines or Safety Systems?
Article by: Mike Barrett
Date: 30 Sep 2009
Love them or hate them in our modern high-tech society Speed Cameras are here to stay. For the last few months I have been re-evaluating my opinions about speed cameras. I am still unconvinced about some of the applications by the authorities, but it is the overall concept that I have been thinking about.
-Could it be that we are living in a Darwinian society, but not with the survival of the fittest, but the survival of the law abiding?
-Have Speed Cameras evolved to a level where they really do affect long term driving habits?
-Are our perceptions of speeding changing: is speeding becoming like drink-driving?
-Are we happy for our movements to be continually monitored on the roads?

This article looks at some of these issues...
My original thoughts were in favour of Red Light Cameras (despite being caught by one myself). I dont see how anyone can argue that running a red light is a valid thing to do!!! What red light cameras do is to highlight the fact that there are problems at the junction. Now when I went through a red light I simply didnt think that the lights would change so quickly on a 70MPH stretch of road. When I made enquiries I discovered that the green, amber, red sequence is the same timing for a 70MPH junction or a 20MPH junction. This obviously makes the faster junctions more dangerous.

It therefore makes perfect sense for the locations of the junctions with a high proportion of accidents to have Red Light Cameras installed. But it also makes a lot more sense for these locations to be published. To my mind there is no point in fining someone after an accident if that accident could have been prevented in the first place. Therefore I think that there SHOULD be Red Light Cameras on all dangerous intersections and that these should be published and publicised.

Moving on to speed cameras these are more difficult to justify. First let me point out the obvious: If you stay within the speed limit then you will not be prosecuted.

Previously when you saw anything from the Speed Camera Partnerships (SCP) it was always bashing on about safety and casualty reduction but with no "real" studies or figures to back it up. However with a lot of the typical locations (hidden round a bend at the bottom of a hill) these looked very much like cash generators. Couple that with the fact that the Government made a big mistake by allowing the SCP to take a cut of the fine and there was no way that the SCP was going to get favourable press and looking at the way some of them act it is not surprising. Even Steven Norris (the Transport Minister who introduced Speed Cameras) admits that they got it wrong with the implementation and funding of Gatso cameras. The SCPs do not have any credibility with the general public, neither do they seem to be making any overtures to organisations who could support them. It also doesn't help when they keep repeating ad nauseam that "Speed Kills" it doesn't!!! A friend of mine in an SCP states that "Speed doesn't kill, but inappropriate speed does.". This is the message that we need to get across.

It has been proven that the Static Speed Camera is really not very effective. In fact it could be argued that they create more problems on the roads than if they were not there. If you travel on the M25 or the M42 during the variable speed "congestion" easing times when the roads are pretty much empty you see drivers slowing down to the set limit for the camera and then speeding up again. Clearly this is not the effect that the system was designed for and indeed it creates a wave effect causing more congestion. The same can be seen at the roadside Gatso speed camera sites. People panic brake when they see them! This can cause more traffic problems than when they were not there it certainly does not help with free flowing traffic.

So this is where average speed cameras score. They are able to monitor long stretches of road and keep the racers from speeding and then suddenly braking. This is where my opinions of speed cameras are changing. I abhor the rather cynical approach of some authorities where with little or no publicity cameras suddenly start appearing, then after we are used to them being there the speed limit suddenly drops... However when they are used responsibly the only people they are 'catching' is the people who are genuinely breaking the law. The new SPECS3 average speed cameras are designed to take the average speed enforcement one step further and monitor an area rather than just a stretch of road. This is currently being promoted as protecting 20MPH school areas.

I must admit that the SPECS average speed cameras do work. I expect that they work in ways that they were not designed to, but they still work. I may be controversial here, but to my mind most accidents occur when making some form of manoeuvre, be it entering or leaving a motorway, or changing lanes combined with a differential in speed of the different cars. This is often because people mis-judge or even dont see other road users. SPECS average speed tend to slow everyone down to approximately the same speed, this alleviates the need to change lanes as there is no advantage to be gained from it as you cannot go any faster. The knock on effect of this is that cameras originally intended to protect the work force actually reduce accidents and thus improve traffic flow. I used to travel 120 miles a day around the M25 mainly through constant roadworks, these were plagued with minor accidents (but long delays) recently travelling through roadworks the only delays I have been subject to is through lane restrictions. I have seen very few incidents in the SPECS controlled works.

I think that Speeding is becoming a campaigning platform similar to Drink Driving. Some time ago it was almost acceptable to drive after having had too much to drink. This was almost part of the culture, but from our (correct) perspective today was completely crazy. Over the last 20 years the people who drive after drinking too much are no longer regarded in a favorable light. In fact drink (or drug) drivers are now social outcasts. Is is possible that in 10 years time speeders will be viewed in the same light?

I often hear people justifying their "right" to speed because the road was clear, the conditions dry, the visibility good, but at the end of the day they are breaking the law pure and simple! Now many years ago the speed limit was unrestricted on rural roads, but then this was changed to National Speed Limit of 70MPH. I personally think that this could be extended to 80 or 85 particularly on rural motorways. The point is that the law says 70 and to go faster is breaking the law. Black and white, no argument. However if we all think this is wrong then we should approach our political representatives about it. They are elected by us to implement what the majority of the voters want.

You could argue that employing more Police (or Community Support Officers) to monitor and ticket offences is the appropriate thing to do. A person witnessing an event can make a judgement on the seriousness of the infraction, not just issue a ticket automatically. However looking at the same sort of thing with parking, a traffic warden is unlikely to be swayed by your excuse... A few seconds into the penalty period and you get ticketed. One the biggest issues with all these camera systems is the robot enforcement nature where you are not spoken to at the time. That is what irks many drivers and even Police officers dislike the fact that they do not get the opportunity to speak to and perhaps educate a driver AT THE TIME the offence or an alleged offence is committed. There are many cases where a technical breach has occurred but where a human officer would not issue a penalty but instead offer advice. Cameras have zero discretion and no understanding of any causal factors or events preceding an offence.

If you thought Speed Cameras were the extent of enforcement then you would be very surprised to hear that similar projects are being developed for community policing as well. This brings me to one of my pet peevs: Personal Privacy. One of the things that I dislike about the way our society is heading is the constant surveillance that we are being subjected to. Maybe this is just a sign of the times, but one of my objections to SPECS is that my number plate is read and recorded. Currently this is only being used for speed infraction enforcement, but who knows where that will lead to? However my objection to that was blown completely out of the water at the Traffex expo earlier this year where I discovered that there are many roadside surveillance systems that record your car details for all sorts of reasons. With that in mind who knows what is being recorded and what it is bring used for? The SPECS details are just another drip in the flood of data that governmental agencies are collecting about us and our movements. I for one am somewhat wary about this, none of it has been properly explained to the public in general and the government has an appalling record on keeping our private data secure. Having data protection and freedom of information acts is good, but only works if you know who is collecting your information and where it is being used.

Of course I cant have it both ways. The ANPR systems are used to detect stolen cars, cross check cars against registration places, check for valid TAX and MOT, etc. they are also used to generate traffic flow information and analysis. All of these are things that I also feel strongly should be enforced and implemented.

In summary I am beginning to come round to the fact that Speed Cameras can be beneficial on many different levels, and pose no further infringements on our liberty or privacy than other systems that have been sneaked in. I think that we should have an open government policy regarding enforcement of this type and have a national independent body representing users as well as operators to oversee the implementation and running of these schemes. We should have clear and published statistics showing the number of tickets issued, the cost of installation and the reduction (or increase) in accidents measured in a scientific manner taking into consideration all pertinent factors. When those conditions have been met then it will be clear if the cameras work or are just Government Cash Machines as is currently the popular belief.

They are elected by us to implement what the majority of the voters want.