Motorists’ cynicism about where and why ‘speed’ cameras are used will grow unless the road safety benefits are clear, says the IAM Motoring Trust. In a survey of 500 motorists, just 35 per cent of respondents believed that cameras were positioned only at serious crash sites, and only 42 per cent believed that revenue raising was not the motive for using speed cameras.
Public approval for road safety cameras stands at 69 per cent, compared to nearly 90 per cent in 1999. This may reflect the huge increase in the number of motorists caught speeding by cameras. Among those surveyed, 28 per cent said that they, or a member of their household, had been 'flashed and fined' in the last three years, compared to 18 per cent in 2002.
From April 2007, new road-safety funding for local authorities will be linked to lowering of death and injury rates. Until now, the practice of funding enforcement operations from motoring fines served to increase cynicism and reduce public support.
Kevin Delaney, Head of Road Safety for the IAM Motoring Trust says, “Breaking the link between enforcement and revenue should encourage local authorities to deploy the right countermeasure for each road safety problem, and use cameras only where they are the best tool for the job. The Government must ensure that the new funding arrangements not only fulfil the prime aim of reducing death and injury but also convince cynical motorists that, when properly deployed, ‘speed’, cameras really are ‘road safety’ cameras.”
