RANT

[Ballistic Banana]

Its starting to make my blood boil

I thought(stupidly) one of the ideas behind safety cameras was to help reduce accidents and RELEASE MORE COPS TO DEAL WITH OTHER MORE IMPORTANT CRIMES.

So why Da'**** do i keep seeing These safety Vans with TWO cops in sitting just before during and after areas that Have Safety Cameras In Operation.
What a wast of Money. MY FCUKIN MOney.

No onder a High percentage of the population is/has lost faith in the Olde Bill. When they are sitting there in full view of all to see.
Bedfordshire is one of the busyiest Police Forces with the Least amount of staff so WHY.WHY.WHY.

Rant over

BB

[trefor]

Do the government realise that they will upset the majority of those these safety cameras catch ... around 40% of these people will be planning to vote labour in at the next election ... they may well change their minds if they get a postcard from the local Police informing them of their indiscretion and asking for 60 notes in exchange for 3 points. Plus their car insurance may go up etc. etc.

Vote winner? Er, I don't think so. Hmm, so something good may come out of all these speed traps ...

[gsxrblue]

Not 100% sure but I thought these vans were staffed by civilians and not police.

[Noodles 4.2]

I saw those vans on Goldington Rd yesterday BB - the sneaky b'stards.

I live with a police lady - she works in the Bedfordshire control room in Kempston. From what she tells me they certainly do not have the spare manpower for these vans.

Tony

[tvrslag]

gsxrblue said: Not 100% sure but I thought these vans were staffed by civilians and not police.

GSXR blue.
I beleive the vans are run by independant companies on behalf of the local force so the guys aren't officers but in some areas you do see police with the vans. However, It has been widely publicised here in Northants that local villagers and members of community neighbourhood watch, have been trained by the Old bill to use hand held laser speed detectors and mobile scameras thereby becoming "speed vigilantes". I believe the idea is three hits on the same car and you get a warning note from the boys in blue, caught again and its 3 points thank you very much. Shame the police think vigilantes for the heinious speeders is OK but vigilante groups sorting out peadophiles, rapists, muggers, burglers etc is wrong and won't be tolerated?

[M@H]

tvrslag said:

Shame the police think vigilantes for the heinious speeders is OK but vigilante groups sorting out peadophiles, rapists, muggers, burglers etc is wrong and won't be tolerated?

Good point !



>> Edited by M@H on Tuesday 7th January 11:19

[mondeoman]

I reckon these speedalista vigilantes deserve a brick or three thru their windows.

[zumbruk]

Noodles 4.2 said: I saw those vans on Goldington Rd yesterday BB - the sneaky b'stards.

Whereabouts in Goldington Road? I live in Bedford, too, so I'd like to know where to keep an eye out. (BTW, the layby before the golf club on the A422 Stagsden bypass, northbound, is a favourite place for those vans. Wait until you can see the layby before planting your right foot!)

[Ballistic Banana]

if they are not police officers then surely they should have out the proper road signs and barriers etc as when i see them they are normally half hanging over a verge.

:mighthavetofixanaccidenthehe:

i normally see them at Gt Barford and Southbound A1 at Beeston just after the Truvelo.

BB

[tvrslag]

For those living in and and around Coventry watch out for the A46. A Van regularly sits on the flyovers and the apperture for the camera lens is so small you can hardly see it until you're going under neath the flyover. Even better you can't even read the "safety camera " bullshit they print on the side of the van!!

[dennisthemenace]

going to street on wendsday ive noticed they are changing the speed camera signs for safety camera signs barstewards

[prelude4ws]

tvrslag said:
For those living in and and around Coventry watch out for the A46. A Van regularly sits on the flyovers and the apperture for the camera lens is so small you can hardly see it until you're going under neath the flyover. Even better you can't even read the "safety camera " bullshit they print on the side of the van!!

mmmm interesting, when i used to live in cov a few years back there was never any scamara vans or rarely police cars on the A46? but that was on the bit going from cov to the m40. there was however, quite often a jaguar or rover test car all masked up bombing up and down there at some speed!!! i think they used it as part of a test circut

[tvrslag]

I think they target this area to try and catch all the Jaguar test drivers bombing up and down the 46 from the Whitley engineering centre. It would be interesting to see if any of the testers have been caught by these scameras and what there employers say if they caught for speeding, after all the cars have to be tested!!!

[victormeldrew]

Maybe its me ... but I don't think so.

I've noticed recently that the vans are sitting on the FAR SIDE of the flyover as you approach them, making it very difficult to identify as a camera van.

Yet more evidence that the intent is to prosecute not prevent, IMHO.

[tvrslag]

Victor meldrew
Perhaps you can shed some light on why that stretch of the A46 must be so bad for accidents??
ALthough it gets pretty busy at rush hours, the rest of the time it is a great road to travel down.
I agree with you that it appears as a revenue gathering exercise rather than as a safety initiative (unless somebody can prove me wrong with accident statistics).
Forgot to say I like the Chimera, I bet you don't open that up down the 46?!

>> Edited by tvrslag on Friday 10th January 13:33

[outlaw]

mondeoman said: I reckon these speedalista vigilantes deserve a brick or three thru their windows.

I second that with brick number 2