Good news! a realisticaly sited Speed Camera.

[ZR1427]

I would say 95% of accidents i see are tailenders at Junctions,so yes statistically more accidents are going to be within speed limits,so realy that point cannot be used in the argument.

SPEED!! in IMHO is being blanket termed by anti and pro movements, but 'Horses for Courses' Speed/safety cameras are effective if used in the right areas and their use is not abused by the authorities.

I have a 30 limit road at the back of my house where children cross the road and play near,in reality it is probably good for a 40 limit as it is a large road with grass either side,yet i still find it remarkable that some feel the need to do 50 or 60+ along it??

There seems to be a lot of Black and White when it comes to speed and Speed Cameras by both sides and i feel its about time there was a lot more thought put into the grey areas in between by both sides as all the time it is 'Us & Them' resentment will grow.

[WildCat]

ZR1427 said:

deltaf said: What do you define as a "correctly placed" speed camera? Drive swift drive safe, but above all drive to your own limits, not one on a sign. Cameras that are put outside schools or heavily populated estate roads for a start. Ime not too HP about Speed Cameras,but believe me ive seen idiots drive at horrendous speeds past schools and through estate roads and the thought of a child or anyone getting hit by one of these idiots does not bear thinking about. Deltaf you have fantastic faith in the the Human race if for one moment you think you can rely on everyone to be a good judge of their own driving and limits. How many drivers this morning can you honestly say would fall into this category?

Already said periodic "brush up driving skills" for all would maybe keep the idiots "on their toes!", and would like to see more hard hitting Green Cross campaign aimed at EVERYBODY!

But on topic of correctly sited camera:

A580 Moorside High School -start of 60mph just before slip road to M61. (Was 50mph in 1970s). Speed camera stationed outside school gate. Rightly so - perhaps...!?

Um! No child actually crosses here as they use the subway to cross the road (school fields are across the road!) It would also be difficult to cross as they have to clamber over wrought iron barriers separating school from busy road. There is another barrier on the central reservation, and a further wrought iron barrier on the opposite side of the dual carriageway - which has no speed cam (despite the bus stop), and has M61 traffic merging at this point.

The school never opens its gates on A580 side of the school either! The children (from leafy area) are thankfully intelligent enough not to attempt this! No-one has been run over here despite the potentially lethal road running past. Moorside Road High School, like the East Lancs Road, has existed on this site since forever, and boasts a clean track record outside the school gate.

My nice responsible side would love to think the camera is stationed there to protect the children! But, as the road is a 50 going on 60mph (even if reduced to 30 or 40), would it save a life, should one of the school children manage to stray suddenly and from nowhere into the road way!

My cynical side thinks -perhaps the camera is there because they know certain numpties will be wellying up once they see the motorway sign! Know of too many who seem to think that the increased speed limit starts from when they see it, and not from where it starts!

However, people have been killed on the 50mph stretch on the Swinton-Irlams 0' Height stretch - which has 3 sets of traffic lights and two overhead pedestrian bridges. Too many people cannot be bothered to walk the 10 metres or so to cross the road safely! (There are two campaigns running in the area - one is to reduce the speed limit on this stretch back to 40 - perhaps including the stretch with Moorside High, and the other is to build another bridge! Any guesses as to which one will win?)

However, despite the proven death record of this stretch (which, alas, would meet the criteria!) - there is no so-called safety camera, but there are red light ones! (Quick to change as well!)

But is this a correctly sited camera despite being outside a school? Or should it be stationed in the lower limit stretch where the deaths have actually occurred?

And - which of the two afore-mentioned campaigns should I put my money on?

Cannot quite make up my mind on this!

>> Edited by WildCat on Monday 16th February 14:02

[safespeed]

ZR1427 said:

Deltaf you have fantastic faith in the the Human race if for one moment you think you can rely on everyone to be a good judge of their own driving and limits.

We earned ourselves the safest roads in the World with excellent policy long before speed cameras. Since we've installed cameras we've been losing our lead.

With very careful targetting, maybe speed cameras could have delivered a safety benefit. But now it's far too late. The public have lost faith in the system and with excellent reason. Those in charge don't have the first clue about what makes the roads safe. See this massive blunder in the rules for speed camera placement:

www.safespeed.org.uk/rules.html

Clearly the people who wrote that rule should not be in charge of anything, let alone national road safety.

Cameras are now irredeemable. Let's scrap the lot immediately and get back to saving lives on the road.

Best Regards,
Paul Smith
Safe Speed
www.safespeed.org.uk

[Sgt^Roc]

deltaf said:

Good news? How many people will it catch out? Probably very few. Hence its another publicity stunt. Take it with a pinch of salt its just more brainwashing.

Yeah for sure they have put giant speed bumps outside one of our schools, testiment to the fact that speed cameras do not work and will not earn enough money on quiet roads