catseye spies are they really on the way?
Discussion
another Brainstorm by Brunstrom... Percy 'never intended Catseye spies'
PROPOSALS to put speed cameras in Catseyes have been criticised by a relative of inventor Percy Shaw.
Glenda Shaw, of Pavement Lane, Bradshaw, Halifax, said it was wrong that his life-saving device should be considered as a way of raising money for the Government.
The idea of transforming the devices with solar-powered mini-cameras has been championed by Richard Brunstrom of the Association of Chief of Police Officers to clamp down on speeding motorists.
But today Mr Shaw's great niece Glenda said the idea smacked of "Big Brother".
"Percy had common-sense ideas and he didn't agree with taxes. I don't think he would have agreed with his device being used as a way of raising money from motorists - which seems to be the purpose of speed cameras," she said.
"He invented Catseyes as a way of getting home safely. This is becoming a Big Brother state. The Catseyes don't seem to be on the roads just as a safety measure any more - this is all revenue driven."
Peter Shepherdson, road safety officer for Calderdale Council, said Catseye cameras would get a mixed response from motorists.
"I think the present cameras are a visible deterrent. They are all painted bright yellow and safety experts with the West Yorkshire Partnership know where they are and publish their whereabouts on the web.
"I think the Catseye cameras are a bit sneaky and that's not the approach taken in West Yorkshire where we're very open and above board."
"We can't imagine it being approved in the UK because it flies in the face of the ethos of safety cameras. They're meant to be a highly-visible deterrent designed to reduce vehicle speed on notorious roads where people are killed."
If the new-style Catseyes receive Government approval they could also be used in Britain to check insurance, MoT details and even unpaid parking tickets or fines.
Chief Constable Brunstrom said the Catseyes were needed because Britain's highways were a "lawless environment."
t.gilberninvader said:
Chief Constable Brunstrom said the Catseyes were needed because Britain's highways were a "lawless environment."
It's not that Britain's highways are "lawless" it's simply that the weaselly control freak doesn't like anyone having an aspect of their life unmonitored and therefore concludes that "it must be lawless". What an utter ar$eh0le.
Has anyone actually managed to get this to work.
You've got to
i) make a camera small enough with a wide enough field of vision to take pics
ii) make it robust enough to be driven over regularly. And if there are cams in it we're all going to drive over them, aren't we.
iii) invent some small way of getting signals back. wires would involve digging up every road. wireless would have size issues.
iv) install the things.
I'm not convinced any of those are practical !
You've got to
i) make a camera small enough with a wide enough field of vision to take pics
ii) make it robust enough to be driven over regularly. And if there are cams in it we're all going to drive over them, aren't we.
iii) invent some small way of getting signals back. wires would involve digging up every road. wireless would have size issues.
iv) install the things.
I'm not convinced any of those are practical !
add to that the fact that it's not exactly hard to "accidentally" have paint spill from the back of your car all over them - scamera's are up high for a reason, and it aint to stand out. If they are on the floor you could dissable them in seconds.
Sounds like your typical labour idea really, poorly thought out, going to cost a fortune, they should save money and buy lottery tickets instead
Sounds like your typical labour idea really, poorly thought out, going to cost a fortune, they should save money and buy lottery tickets instead
Yugguy said:
I can't help thinking actually implementing this would be political suicide.
I hope you are right, but the motoring community seems to put up with an awful lot.
On a related subject, I heard recently that our motorway network was having a load of permanent ANPR cameras installed, and that this system would be operational by this summer. If it is only ANPR, I'm not too bothered, but what about it being used for speed checking and prosecutions? Is this really what's going on? Anything known?
Best wishes all,
Dave.
TripleS said:
I can't help thinking actually implementing this would be political suicide.
I hope you are right, but the motoring community seems to put up with an awful lot.
On a related subject, I heard recently that our motorway network was having a load of permanent ANPR cameras installed, and that this system would be operational by this summer. If it is only ANPR, I'm not too bothered, but what about it being used for speed checking and prosecutions? Is this really what's going on? Anything known?
Best wishes all,
Dave.
Are all ANPR forward facing? what would happen if say, your numberplate got caught on a kirb and bent backwards? what sort of angle would it have to accidently get bent back at before the ANPR's couldn't read it?
autismuk said:
Has anyone actually managed to get this to work.
You've got to
i) make a camera small enough with a wide enough field of vision to take pics
ii) make it robust enough to be driven over regularly. And if there are cams in it we're all going to drive over them, aren't we.
iii) invent some small way of getting signals back. wires would involve digging up every road. wireless would have size issues.
iv) install the things.
I'm not convinced any of those are practical !
I'm fairly certain they use them in Malaysia.
Boosted.
AFAIK they have already installed cats eye cameras on parts of the M8, but they are not used for enforcement. Yet.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3
Just as a follow up this technology is not new see below something similar been in the states over 3 years;
From the Astucia manufacturer the "intelligent road studs" are embedded in pavement:
The twist that's underreported is that this is evidently not a new technology, and has been in use in the U.S. for at least three years. According to a June 20, 2001 BBC story:
A British firm has pioneered a camera which is hidden in a catseye and is hoping it will eventually replace conventional cameras.
The catseye cameras, developed by Kent-based firm Astucia, are already in use in America and south-east Asia.
Despite this, the only mention anywhere on Astucia website of the camera studs is a 2004 conference announcement, which pretends the technology is new:
...new exciting Astucia Traffic Management Suite of products, including the new Camera and Detector Studs
From the Astucia manufacturer the "intelligent road studs" are embedded in pavement:
The twist that's underreported is that this is evidently not a new technology, and has been in use in the U.S. for at least three years. According to a June 20, 2001 BBC story:
A British firm has pioneered a camera which is hidden in a catseye and is hoping it will eventually replace conventional cameras.
The catseye cameras, developed by Kent-based firm Astucia, are already in use in America and south-east Asia.
Despite this, the only mention anywhere on Astucia website of the camera studs is a 2004 conference announcement, which pretends the technology is new:
...new exciting Astucia Traffic Management Suite of products, including the new Camera and Detector Studs
Following on from Mrs Miggins link regarding BBC news article, from next April the cameras will not have to be visible again, i understand, i maybe wrong...when this happens this Scottish 'TRIAL-run' could be brought into the rest of the UK road network under the guise of a wonderful new motorists'driving aid' for bad weather conditions and for our benefit not the Governments coffers!
Stealth cameras seem to be here already then!!
If this isn't Big Brother,i don't know what is. Every trip by every motorist will be logged, all vehicle details eg licenced drivers, mot'd, taxed,convicted, points on licence, tyre tread depth etc etc.
Of course there will be some dictators like Brunstrom who say that this will only be a good thing, and if one doesn't do anything unlawful, like exceed the speed limit by say even 1/2 mph then one wouldn't have anything to fear by their introduction!
But i think it must go against our right to privacy and must also go against our right to confidentiality.
Stealth cameras seem to be here already then!!
If this isn't Big Brother,i don't know what is. Every trip by every motorist will be logged, all vehicle details eg licenced drivers, mot'd, taxed,convicted, points on licence, tyre tread depth etc etc.
Of course there will be some dictators like Brunstrom who say that this will only be a good thing, and if one doesn't do anything unlawful, like exceed the speed limit by say even 1/2 mph then one wouldn't have anything to fear by their introduction!
But i think it must go against our right to privacy and must also go against our right to confidentiality.
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