Didn't Realise Specs Cameras On Separate Roads Are Linked!

[Macadoodle]

A workmate of mine told me this morning that a friend of his received a speeding ticket for exceeding the average speed between two cameras - the thing is these cameras are on two completely separate roads!

He was caught between a camera on the Southend bound A127 and a camera on the south bound A130. There are a few limit changes, traffic lights and two large junctions between these points which makes it even more surprising. My workmate says his friend was indeed toeing it and caught all the lights on green, but was still surprised to get a ticket (as would anyone I guess). Apparently it stated his average speed was in excess of what is permitted for someone travelling at the legal limit between those two points.

[Macadoodle]

SS2. said:

Google SPECS3.

Oooo...that's interesting. I remember reading about these in the press a while back. I thought they were going to be used on urban 20mph roads to combat rat-runs. Clearly I thought wrong!

[Macadoodle]

FurtiveFreddy said:

Can you get a copy of the NIP from him, remove his personal details and post it up here?

Sorry, I can't get a copy of the NIP - I don't personally know the guy who got the ticket (to be fair, if I'd have just got a ticket, I wouldn't give a copy to someone I don't know to paste in the internet!). I have no reason to disbelieve my workmate though. He is a car nut too and was surprised as me that the guy got done.

jesta1865 said:

Knowing the roads concerned and the junctions involved, if the guy has been done, then he must have been caning it, some of those roads are nsl (70) and even in the mrs motor (hot hatch) i would struggle to average over 70 on parts.

I won't repeat the speeds I was told, but suffice to say it was considerably over the limit. Coupled with the fact that all the traffic lights he hit were green helped him on his way, and meant he didn't really have to slow down that much.

And if you're in a hot hatch and can't manage to get over 70mph between those two points I think your car might be broken

[Macadoodle]

MKnight702 said:

Being able to hit 70 and being able to average 70 are completely different.

I know. I was being silly, hence the smiley.

ging84 said:

stories about Op's work mates are rarely true and accurate, So when it's an Op's work mate's friend's story
why are we even bothering to respond?

And yet here you are....

I have no reason to disbelieve my workmate (who I know well, not just an acquaintance). I'm not fussed if you believe me or not. Take it or leave it.

Grey Ghost said:

However, to have this unmonitored stretch of dual carriageway between two completely separate groups of average speed cameras surely cannot lead to a conviction ?

According to this website, that's exactly what they're meant to do: http://www.speedcheck.co.uk/specs3.htm

ging84 said:

Medic-one said:

Are you sure he isn't just caught on two camera's on the A127 and reading his NIP letter wrong ?

or maybe he read it right, but wasn't very good at explaining it to his friend, or his friend wasn't very good at understanding, or that friend understood him, but wasn't very good at explaining it to the op, or he explained it right, but the op wasn't very good at understanding, or maybe the the op understood it right but isn't very good at explaining it to us (unlikely he drew a map). That is all before we even get on to the possibility that someone involve could have embellished the truth.
This is why the story is pointless, as there is zero chance of ever getting to the bottom of it

The NIP was for between the points on the map, not two cameras on the A127. It was pretty clearly explained. Unsure why ging84 has got such a bee in his bonnet about it. Perhaps he is hard of thinking. The camera maufacturer's own website explain that's how they work - by creating a network of cameras that all work together.

Everyone who lives in this area knows about the 'cheat' where if you are coming off the A127 at that junction it is possible to accelerate over the limit as you go past that camera and not get caught as you don't go past another one. (At least until you hit the camera on the A130 and you've been going far too fast between the two!)

[Macadoodle]

FurtiveFreddy said:

V8forweekends said:

There are 2 junctions - even with light traffic and green lights I suggest it would be hard to average 100 mph - easy to do 100+ on some stretches, yes, but average 100+ ?

Because we can't verify the facts, we are all making assumptions, but the question the OP raised was whether it is possible to be measured between two SPECS cameras on different stretches of road and the answer to that is definitely yes.

The secondary question is what maximum average speed a hot hatch could achieve between the two points the OP marked on the map and I am suggesting it would be possible to average over 100 in the right conditions. It's two long stretches of fast DC with a couple of big roundabouts in the way. If you were doing 115+ on the straight bits and slowed to 40-50 for the roundabouts, you could average over 100.

Of course, we can't prove anything, but then this is the Internet, isn't it?

Please stop talking sense, I don't think some on here can take it!

[Macadoodle]

jesta1865 said:

you are probably right, but unless this was about 4am i doubt there was that little traffic that he would get away with driving the way he would have to. the roads are quite heavily used

According to my workmate it was around 2am. What surprised me almost as much as the guy getting a ticket was the fact he had green lights all the way round the roundabouts! I have never managed to get all greens round there. But then again I've never driven as fast as that between the junctions, so they've always turned to red by the time I've got there