How about....
Speed camera crisis
By David Williams Motoring Editor, Evening Standard
31 March 2005
Scotland Yard cannot cope with the number of drivers being caught on its speed cameras, it was revealed today.
The Met may now have to pay another police force to help process fines from its 400 cameras across Greater London.
(Sound familiar ? Notts CC "farming out murders" cos he "couldn't cope" !)
It has been left struggling to cope throughout the past year and at times has had a backlog of thousandsof fixed penalties. Today road safety campaigners said Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair should bring in outside help to prevent the system coming to a halt.
But drivers' groups said Scotland Yard should concentrate on frontline policing and not spend more money "persecuting" motorists.
The number of vehicles caught on speed cameras has exceeded all expectations. At present, the Met relies on an army of backroom staff in Sidcup to fine the drivers caught on "gatsos" in London.
Collection rates of fixed penalties are only 40 per cent - meaning six out of 10 drivers escape without paying their fines.
Today Mayor Ken Livingstone's road safety adviser, Jenny Jones, called on Sir Ian to take up an offer from Essex police to help out before the situation gets worse.
The move is being blocked by the Met which fears being branded "anti-motorist", despite lobbying by the Mayor and Len Duval, chair of the Metropolitan Police Authority.
Ms Jones said it was "absolutely vital" the London Safety Camera Partnership outsourced all or part of its operation. It would allow the Met to set its cameras at lower trigger speeds to catch motorists who get away with speeding at well over the 30mph maximum.
"Without the expansion of the safety camera scheme, people will die who could have lived to a ripe old age," said Ms Jones.
"It is the Met's responsibility to find a way of saving those lives and if it means using another force like Essex, then we have to grit our teeth and invite them in."
But Paul Smith, of Safe Speed Road Safety Campaign, said: "Motorists will feel outraged by any attempt to spend more money to drive up speeding fines."
The partnership has already been forced to freeze plans to hire 30 extra officials following a government ban on staff recruitment.
More than 600 lethal road sites in the capital are still not covered by cameras. Together they are estimated by transport experts to account for more than 2,400 deaths and serious accidents a year.
Only a quarter of LSCP cameras follow guidelines and flash at 36mph and above in 30mph zones.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/lond ... 20Standard
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