Can a mobile van, get you from the front?

[chris_freebie]

Hello,

I may have been approaching a mobile speed camera van parked at the side of the road at a 'keen' pace yesterday. However it was one of those vans where *I think* they park up and get in the back and radar you.

With that in mind, if I was approaching the vehicle effectively head on, can it still catch me or would the man inside be oblivious until I drove past the back (by which point of course my speed had been reduced )

Sorry if this is a double post also.

Thanks,
Chris.

[barney123]

chris_freebie said:

Hello,

I may have been approaching a mobile speed camera van parked at the side of the road at a 'keen' pace yesterday. However it was one of those vans where *I think* they park up and get in the back and radar you.

With that in mind, if I was approaching the vehicle effectively head on, can it still catch me or would the man inside be oblivious until I drove past the back (by which point of course my speed had been reduced )

Sorry if this is a double post also.

Thanks,
Chris.

I doubt it - they have no where to put their dohnuts and their flask, unless they are sat in the back. Sometimes they point out of the side - on mw bridges etc.

edit - I mean I doubt they got you !

Edited by barney123 on Thursday 23 October 10:18

[chris_freebie]

Thanks. I think it's unlikely. I was also on the other side of the road on an overtake I'd be planning for about 2 miles! Probably just edging over the 50mph limit to get past quicker.... of course it would be much safer to sit there at 49mph lol... erm... yes...

[Speedy Surveyor]

Sounds like you're safe to me.

If you can afford it get a GPS speed camera detector. I recently got one and it's excellent. I can drive at appropriate speeds and not worry about mobile scamera vans catching me out (as they've done before).

[14-7]

I thought all camera vans preferred to get you from the front because the piccies then show the driver as well?

[bull996]

14-7 said:

I thought all camera vans preferred to get you from the front because the piccies then show the driver as well?

What he was saying is that he approaching the front of the van.

[barney123]

bull996 said:

14-7 said:

I thought all camera vans preferred to get you from the front because the piccies then show the driver as well?

What he was saying is that he approaching the front of the van.

So what you are saying is that they prefer to be facing you when they take you from behind.

[jimmyb]

Mobile camera vans either point the laser out the back window or side window dep on location but never out the front. So basically if its parked up facing the same direction of your travel and you are heading towards the back of the van as it were they can get you opposite is not true.

[caiss4]

Mobile vans will ping you regardless of direction of travel. In the case of the OP they would take a reading after he passed the van.

Of course you could probably regard the driver as being a tw@t for not noticing a camera van that he's passed but then you should talk to my other half; both her tickets were rear views, one at 47m and the other 730m past the van (which she didn't see )

Just re-read the OP's post and realise he had slowed before passing the van. Nonetheless bearing in mind the discussion of prior opinion in another thread to have been NIP'd for apparently exceeding the speed limit just 47m from the back of a van (the operator probably only had the car in sight for 25m or around 1.2secs at the alledged speed) shows you can't take chances.

Edited by caiss4 on Thursday 23 October 19:55

[jimmyb]

caiss4 said:

Nonetheless bearing in mind the discussion of prior opinion in another thread to have been NIP'd for apparently exceeding the speed limit just 47m from the back of a van (the operator probably only had the car in sight for 25m or around 1.2secs at the alledged speed) shows you can't take chances.

Edited by caiss4 on Thursday 23 October 19:55

Surely this would not be legal as there needs to be a determination of speed as they are not allowed to simply point and shoot like in a video game??

[caiss4]

Well as I understand it these SCP folk have amazing processing powers; they must be super-human!

Anyway we thought about contesting it because:

1. the measured speed was 46mph in a 30
2. the van was parked on the right(northbound) principally targeting cars that had just enetered the 30 zone (my wife was just leaving going south)
3. the van was parked just 100m south of a sharp 90 degree bend my wife had just driven round
4. the car in question was a 110bhp diesel auto Galaxy with a safe indicated exit speed from this bend of 23mph; it then, apparently accelerated to a true 46 (indicated 48-50mph) in less than 140m?? (I tried it several times with kickdown(on a 60 NSL BTW) and it couldn't do it)
5. and of course the device in question was an LT20:20 which had been shown to measure the speed of a brick wall as 60mph when taking a panning measurement; guess how this guy would have got a measurement in 1.2secs!

And whilst we were considering all this someone locally contested a speeding offence with a professional witness disputing the veracity of laser doppler measurements from a LT20:20 and the mag. just said 'LT20:20 is approved by the HO, good enough for me; you're guilty'(Can't recall the points but the fine was in excess of £300 plus costs)

At that point just cough up £60 and take the points...

[MonkeyHanger]

jimmyb said:

Surely this would not be legal as there needs to be a determination of speed as they are not allowed to simply point and shoot like in a video game??

They may not be "allowed" to do it (prior opinion ?) but i can assure you they do.

There was a scam van sitting up the road from work on Tuesday and even though i was chugging along at 25 in 5th (deliberately..in a Transit Connect ) he still had me well & truly in his sights. It was obvious that i wasn't even close to 30.