Safe Speed Forums

Thames Valley camera Partnership which misled the public as a last ditch attempt is seeking to rent out speed cameras to villages.

Villages offered chance to rent their own speed cameras
Villages could hire their own speed cameras under a scheme suggested by a cash-strapped authority.

By David Millward, Transport Editor
Published: 3:54PM BST 30 Aug 2010
Thames Valley Safer Roads Partnership, which has lost £600,000 funding from Oxfordshire, is prepared to open talks with communities who are prepared to foot the £5,000 a year bill themselves.

It is believed to be the first partnership in the country which is ready to keep cameras going if somebody else is ready to pay for their operating costs.
The decision by Oxfordshire to pull out from the partnership means that the 79 cameras in the county have been switched off, triggering road safety fears in some parts of the county.

"We are looking at going out to communities that have expressed an interest and offering them a package to keep cameras running," said a spokesman for the partnership.

"The cameras are definitely something we want to see continuing. Since the start of the partnership in 2000, road casualties have dropped by 50 per cent. It is not all down to cameras but we believe that they are a contributory factor."

According to the partnership £5,000 a year covers the cost of collecting and processing the film from the camera as well as doing the necessary paperwork for the prosecution to take place. However the £60 fine is paid to the Treasury.

Nuneham Courtenay, a village on the A4074 from Oxford to Reading, was the first community to express an interest in taking over the camera.

However it has decided not to go ahead after being told that its 100 householders would have to find £5,000 between them. "It would be the equivalent of adding £50 a year to our council tax," said Colin George, a parish councillor.

"The camera only controls one side of the street and our big concern is that we would be expected to pay for something we have already paid for."

However the willingness of Thames Valley to consider private funding reflects the cash crisis partnerships face.

One, Wiltshire and Swindon, has closed down completely and there is a belief that others could follow as the Coalition's spending cuts bite, especially after the Comprehensive Spending Review.

In addition many cameras, which rely on film, are reaching the end of their useful life. Parts are hard to come by, leaving partnerships with the task of finding at least £40,000 for each new device.

The willingness of Thames Valley to consider private funding was welcomed by an AA spokesman.

"There has been quite a backlash against having the cameras switched off. It has created a policy void and if the message gets across that they are not working, motorists will either speed or be confused.

"There is a shortage of cash and whether parishes have the money to pick up the bill is another matter. It is certainly a step forward in terms of dealing with void we are creating."

Ah!, but if it saves only ONE life......

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My views do not represent Safespeed but those of a driver who has driven for 39 yrs, in all conditions, at all times of the day & night on every type of road and covered well over a million miles, so knows a bit about what makes for safety on the road,what is really dangerous and needs to be observed when driving and quite frankly, the speedo is way down on my list of things to observe to negotiate Britain's roads safely, but I don't expect some fool who sits behind a desk all day to appreciate that.

What a very selfish set of people: not prepared to fork out a mere £50 to reduce the death toll by 50%.

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When I see an adult on a bicycle, I do not despair for the future of the human race. H.G. Wells
When I see a youth in a motor car I do d.c.brown

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Only when ideology, prejudice and dogma are set aside does the truth emerge - Kepler

Did you miss one of these ,perchance

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

[quote=] ( from the article)

"There has been quite a backlash against having the cameras switched off. It has created a policy void and if the message gets across that they are not working, motorists will either speed or be confused.

[/quote]
The willingness of Thames Valley to consider private funding was welcomed by an AA spokesman
There is a third option -motorists will finally see that accidents are not rising in line with the predictions of the SCP prophets of doom ,and realise that there's more to safe driving than the disciples of doom prophesy .

And even a fourth - that sanity has deserted the AA camp.It's certainly one reason for me never to take out AA membership again .

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

OH Purleeaase!!!

Clearly they're the only two possible outcomes...

Even the most half-witted motorist ought to feel insulted by that remark!

Mole - options 3 & 4 ????

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lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on