Aussie wheelie-bin camera
The Canadian authorities are taking their lessons from the Australian police, and have started disguising their speed cameras to look like the power transformers or utility boxes commonly seen by the roadside.
When asked whether it was fair, Edmonton Police Association president Peter Ratcliff said to the local paper: "Well, I guess you have to ask yourself the question, is driving over the speed limit fair?" And guess what? The cameras' profits go directly to the Edmonton Police Service.
The department isn't taking the natural public lambasting lying down. It's reportedly being investigated for attempting to frame a journalist who described the programme as a "cash cow", and for offering a contract, with no tendering process, to a company called ACS to manage the cameras -- in return for luxury vacations in Las Vegas for police officers. The report said that the department's acting chief is under investigation for accepting illegal gratuities from ACS.