Government Cuts Hit More Speed Camera Budgets

[RobBrady]

This week sees more cameras being mothballed due to the government's stringent budget cuts.

Although many counties have decided to keep there speed cameras, and indeed many new cameras are still been erected across the country, BBC Lincolnshire reports that a digital upgrade of Lincolnshire's damaged cameras is on hold pending the outcome of the government's spending review next month. This is despite more than a quarter of speed cameras on the county's roads being out of action, many as a result of being set on fire or vandalism.

This is Wiltshire confirmed that both fixed speed cameras and mobile speed cameras are no longer operating in Wiltshire. This follows the announcement back in August that the switch-off would happen in October as a direct result of government spending cuts. Speed enforcement in Wiltshire will now be carried out by Wiltshire's traffic police alongside volunteers in Community Speed Watch schemes.

The Blackburn Citizen has reported that speed cameras in Lancashire that do not cut accidents will be axed.

They say that at least 30, possibly as much as 40, of Lancashire's speed cameras are set to be turned off because they fail to reduce accidents. Tim Ashton, Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport at Lancashire County Council, said the results of a review of every single camera in the county were ‘imminent’.

The axed cameras would remain in place with a bag placed over them, presumably because of the expense to dismantle them. Although a number of cameras around the country have been turned off, many have been left uncovered as a visual deterrent to speeders and many are destined to be switched back on dependant on increases in future grants.
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Robert Brady

[mikealder]

[Guivre46]

They will find a way to get the money. Central gov can put up road tax and fuel duty, or increase the DVLA penalties. Local gov just increases parking fees and fines, puts in cross-hatched sites [we have one about 3 car lengths short of the traffic lights across a service road - it is very easy to get caught in it], and more yellow lines. Central gov is going to do quite nicely from 20% vat on car sales.
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Mike R [aka Wyvern46]
Go 530T - unsupported
Go550 Live [not renewed]
Kia In-dash Tomtom

[MikeGordon]

Can anyone explain why there is an absolute plague of cameras on the A412 in Watford and South Oxhey, especially on the A412 around Croxley Green and by the infamous Bushey Arches, which is invariably choked up.

Local roads are plastered with some 22 cameras cameras, and you can add bus lanes, excessive and confusing signage and often deliberately out of sync traffic light phasing.

I begin to wonder whether certain councils have employed people who are "speed camera and road safety evangelists" who act for political reasons regardless of the real-time situation on the roads?

Everyone abhors excessive speed in the wrong place but does all this "traffic management" actually cause accidents rather than prevent them?

Mike

[treeboa]

no matter what cuts the government put in place they wont axe what is blatenly a `good little earner` unless it starts to cost them money, obviously damaged cameras would cost a lot to replace, not of course that anyone would condone such action personally i would turn a blind eye if i saw it happening

[TVR_nut]

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