I thought this might be a good forum to get a consensus from around the world about speed cameras and what you have and what you think so perhaps you guys can help?
I live in Western Australia, we have a very low population compared to the world, are roads are not too bad, we have a lot of open road as you can imagine.
 The fastest we are allowed to go is 110kph [68.3 mph] our freeways are 100kph [62 mph] . Our state government is buying more speed cameras both fixed and hidden, shall we say , I'll bring this up later. The government states that neither the police or the government makes any money from it goes to a body called the RTTA Road trauma trust accountant. Yet I wonder if this is not run by government?  There was an article in the paper on the weekend basically saying that in just two years its raised its revenue by about 30% [yup 30%] it is predicted to rake in about 97 million dollars plus, we are only a very small state here remember. Now what's is happening is that with this money they are rolling out further cameras , they are claiming that they have reduced the road toll by 23%  agh? Will if its that great Im wondering why the rest of the world doesn't have it?? They are following a model set by the eastern states , so you guys chime in .
Now Im passionate about my motoring I have several cars from different makes but I'm losing the enjoyment of driving , now I'm not saying I'm speeding everywhere its just I spend more time looking at my speedo and wondering what's hiding in the bushes I'm just driving in fear .  I was recently branded as a dickhead and also a criminal as I voiced my opinion and said of course this is revenue raising.. Bare in mind I have I have a full license and have all my demerit points for many years.
Now let me put this into perspective. The non fixed speed cameras we have are sometimes placed in the back of a small SUV and parked near the road , also they can take units out and have them hidden in bushes and behind walls , yes the get you done from the rear as well! they are painted black and now have units in very thin tripods and the cam is not much bigger than a cigarette packet.. They are not run by the police, but lets leave the police  [even though they are in on it, see the latest campaign] out of it. Even the minister for police said they are not supposed to hide them, wish I could post up some pics to show you guys how cleaver they hide them, maybe later.
 Back to perspective..  You can be done here for as little as 4kph over the speed limit ok that's less than 2.5 mph, in the east they get done for just 2 that's less thats 1.25 mph ! guys in Vic correct me if Im wrong. I saw a speeding fine from Victoria that booked someone for 3kph over the speed limit the fine was $3000, yes you read right $3000!! Just because it was a company car and they wouldn't or couldn't identify the driver.. Sorry but in anyone's book that's just a money grab for 3kph = 1.8 mph.
There is a loophole that people are unaware of and that is that if you have a car that 10 years and older by Australian Design Rules its speedometer can be out by 10% + 4 kph, so you can see this discrepancy between getting booked! You wouldn't even know it.. All new[er] cars now have there speedometers advanced under new laws, so people effectively drive under the speed limit, without knowing it and wonders why the hell the person behind gets frustrated..??

So tell me what you guys think, will you say like a lot of people don't speed and you wont get caught, or is this just blatant revenue raising with the way they set the tolerance at such a low speed? What does your country do?

Thanks for your time guys...

"Came too close to dying to stop living now!"

Revenue raising, gov. control etc.

-Gary Burnette-

"They are not run by the police, but lets leave the police  [even though they are in on it, see the latest campaign] out of it. Even the minister for police said they are not supposed to hide them, wish I could post up some pics to show you guys how cleaver they hide them, maybe later."

So what I get out the above is that a private company is running the cameras as a profit making enterprise and splitting the resulting funds with the contracting government body, is that how it works there in OZ?  As a government/corporate co operative this is just about like hiring mercenaries to do defense work. It is hard to see how justice and individual rights can stand against such an agreement.  But the 1% are probably making out pretty well after flogging this traffic enforcement scheme to lots of local governments around the world and giving kickbacks to the elected officials to keep it in place.   And of course it reduces the size of government, welcome to AynRandia...

Doug T

The Highlands, Louisville, Ky.

I know the 10% error rate used to apply in the states but I don't know if it still does. First problem I see is that the police are not the ones enforcing the speed limits. That is simply BS. Civilians are motivated by money not law. I don't know about your laws but I'm pretty sure that that wouldn't be allowed here. When I was younger I was always letting people know if there was a speed trap on their way. I don't do that anymore. Our town has a highway through it with a 50MPH speed limit. 50 will get you run over. Actual driven speed is at least 60MPH and above. The 65MPH zone you will be passed at 80MPH all the time. Often the cops are the ones doing the passing or sitting on the road side. I have no idea what you have to do to get a ticket for speed today. Usually people are pulled over for driving while young or lane cutting.
That said, if your empty highway speeds were pushed up into the 70MPH or so range it would help on those long long roads. As far as the cameras and speed guns I would be a lot more for them if they actually slowed down traffic. At least to a reasonable speed. I've sent several EMAIL's to New Hampshire government suggesting they no longer maintain the highway speed signs since nobody, including the police, pay any attention to them. Enough? Chuck


Y's guys rule!
Looking for McCullouch VS57 brackets and parts. Also looking for 28 Chrysler series 72 parts. And early Hemi parts.

MoonShadow, 292 w/McCulloch, 28 Chrysler Roadster, 354 Hemi)
Manchester, New Hampshire

Arizona had a rule in place that basically said the automated system had to photograph the car, rear plate and driver - and the driver had to be clearly recognizable. If you look up the "monkeyman" or similar - there was a guy that always wore a monkey mask and ran up about $35,000 worth of "un-enforceable" tickets on the 101 loop in Phoenix. State legislature eventually made it illegal to put the speed cameras on any state routes - pretty much ended that mess. There was also a problem where most of the law enforcement entities had told their guys that for "everyday driving", 10 miles over the limit was OK (for them not me). Cameras kept sending them tickets ......so finally the auto cameras had to be "re-set" to 11 miles over the limit as the trigger point - so our customary 10 was OK.  

 
 Steve Metzger       Tucson, Arizona

We had photo radar for some years hear in bc. canada cameras took picture  of the licence plate,ticket went to registerd owner. he paid the fine or no plates for next year. It was thrown out as was a money grab(tax). it was usualley in a aria that was hard not to speed,bottem of a big hill etc,verry litle to do with saftey or axident prone aria. it is now in high axident trafic lights to show who ran the light ,that part is good. in my mind a police car is the best solution for speeders,1 usualley gets away with 10ks no ticket,plus the embaresement of being puled over,red light flashing,  , the frend that says was that you getting a ticket.wife chewing a new  ear hole.  

Up in the People's Republic of Washington, we mainly see red light cameras. There's been a number of disputes about the length of the yellow light being shortened, so they can catch you on the red. Many problems with the free right turn on the red also. They have caused some rashes of rear end collisions as people panic stop in the yellow. It's clearly about the money, as its split between the city and the Phoenix, AZ company who install the cameras for free. The state doesn't use them, only the cities. The state doesn't allow them on state highway intersections where they run thru cities. The ticket goes to the car, not the driver, and does not carry points against a license.

Our rural roads are 40-45mph, urban freeways 60, and rural freeways 70mph. There's talk of going up to 75 in the rural interstates.

We have variable speed limits thru downtown Seattle on the freeway. As traffic loads up, they cut back the limit to 30 or so, and lane by lane. Over mountain passes, same thing, with adjustments due to rain, snow, ice, or heavy truck traffic. But no speeding tickets by camera.

The exception is school zones. I loaned my van to a friend, who managed to run a school zone twice in 45 minutes. Cost him $250. But again, on the vehicle not the driver. So, that's just a money deal, not a way to change behavior. Too many people around here can blow off money if it doesn't get their insurance cancelled.

I have a young friend who's a State Patrol. They can ticket you at any speed over the limit, but normally overlook 5-7mph on roads 40 and up. Unless it's a school zone, or your driving draws attention.

Periodically, you'll see a "wolf pack" of 6-8 State Patrols, with one on the radar or laser, and the rest pulling cars over and writing the tickets. They also do this with airplanes, allowing them to get a whole pack of cars at one time.

Our 10 over fines are mostly under $200. Over 100mph, you get to wear bracelets, and they impound the car. Kind of killed the joy of a Vette or a Porsche running late at night on an empty road.

miker
55 bird, 32 cabrio F code
Kent, WA
Tucson, AZ

Ok just to let you guys know we ALSO have unmarked police cars, they can be just about anything Subaru, Camry, they get you while driving with that radar. Personally I think they would do better being marked and in traffic that way if you where inclined you would slow down it doesn't cost you a cent.. !
Yes we have red light cameras too, those I 'm fine with running a red light is suicide, but as someone pointed out you have to be careful too as people are over cautious and can slam on the brakes.. mmm kinda thing they do when seeing a camera hidden in the bushes !
NEWS just to hand! Now remember I said about the state gov claiming that it has lowered the death rate by 'about' 23%. Well on this mornings news the latest is because of our congestion and slow traffic it is going to cost us 53 billion dollars in the future [AUS], by 2031 Perth will be the worst.. Agh but we are all tolled we are going too fast and killing people by the score??  In my state we have had a MASSIVE increase in population over the last say ten years because of the mining boom, I personally have seen the changes in the road in that time , I now have to go to another street and use the lights to get on the main road as its already blocked and you cant get on. So what Im saying is that its the congestion on our roads that has lowered any sort of death rate,  its got nothing to do with their so call speeding campaign they are just taking the credit !! 



"Came too close to dying to stop living now!"

Here in Florida it is mostly red light cameras.As far as the government not making a profit-Expecting truth from a politician is rather like expecting  charity from a banker.All governments would like to control our actions and always work to that end.

Don't let them fool you, it's all about the money. A friend of mine who lives in Washington state has told me they have the Gestapo like speed cameras out there.

Here in Missouri it's Red Light Cameras. But, they have been turned off for the last year, or two, since the issue has ended up in the courts. I'm sure that the companies that own these cameras and the cities that rent them will find a way to come out on top. Just too much money to be made. Then there are issues like re-timing the traffic signals to have shorter green and yellow lights.

They wave the public safety flag, but it's all about the money. Sorry for my rant, but I haven't had a good week.

Everybody enjoy the weekend!
-Dave