The Big Yellow Monsters

It has now been many years since the government’s introduction of traffic cameras and still the debates keep on coming.

Many smaller towns and villages will have seen the spy equipment meant for cars turned off in the last year or so as local authorities struggle to maintain budgets and have chosen to make cuts in this area.  Rather than be taken out of action altogether though, many of the cameras have simply been covered up with little fluorescent coats – most attractive on country lanes!  It seems that nobody seems to know whether they are staying or going…have we seen the back of this type of spy equipment UK?

Traffic cameras in the London area are still in action and London has the most concentrated number of traffic cameras in the United Kingdom (over 1300 speed cameras in total).  You’d think that this meant that more people were being caught and charged with speeding offences than anywhere else but this doesn’t seem to be the case.  A recent survey has found that out of a total of 42 British counties which have speed cameras in action, London came seventh from the bottom of the list of action being taken against speedy drivers.  Furthermore, only around 4% of drivers actually had action taken against them in London which is hugely disproportionate to the number of cars in the City.

So the debate continues, and it’s the same debate that’s been going on before they even went into operation: how much difference will these cameras make?  Will our roads be safer?  Is it just another ‘Big Brother’ measure?