Net closes in on urban speeders

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Network of cameras planned for 20mph zones
Cameras track cars' average speed
System could do away with speed bumps

Soon cameras could replace speed bumps in 20mph zones

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Speed cameras which track the average speed of cars are to be installed in 20mph residential areas as an alternative to speed bumps.

The system is intended to catch motorists who slow down for speed cameras or speed bumps and then speed up again, according to a report in today's Times.

Entry and exit points to the 20mph zones will be controlled by cameras, which can calculate the average speed of the vehicle while travelling through that zone. If you are caught speeding, the cameras will transmit your registration number to an office which can issue penalties.

Councils are targeting 20mph zones because there have been crashes caused by drivers breaking the speed limit or accelerating aggressively between speed bumps. If a pedestrian is hit at 20mph, 95% will survive, but 95% will die if hit at 40mph.

Also, the Transport Research Laboratory has found that carbon monoxide emissions increase by 82% and nitrogen oxide by 37% on roads with speed bumps, and the London Ambulance Service estimates that speed bumps claim up to 500 lives a year because crews are delayed in reaching cardiac arrest victims.

Trials of the new system have proved the reliability of the system, and the Home Office is due to approve them in November, with the first fines likely early next year. No tickets were issued during the trials, but drivers complying with the 20mph limit rose by one third.

• Portsmouth is to have a city-wide 20mph speed limit by 2008, according to reports. Half the city will have a 20mph limit by 2007, which is intended to cut accident levels, reduce noise and improve air quality.