Skip to main content

Scotland’s speed cameras upgrade

Transport Scotland has announced a US$3.8 million package to replace safety cameras across the country. The safety cameras, which detect motorists driving above the speed limit, will be upgraded to digital technology. The new cameras will offer a number of benefits including improved reliability, faster processing of offences and clearer images of offending vehicles. A Transport Scotland spokeswoman said: "Road safety is a priority for this government and we are making good progress towards meeting the amb
January 23, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
505 Transport Scotland has announced a US$3.8 million package to replace safety cameras across the country.

The safety cameras, which detect motorists driving above the speed limit, will be upgraded to digital technology.  The new cameras will offer a number of benefits including improved reliability, faster processing of offences and clearer images of offending vehicles.

A Transport Scotland spokeswoman said: "Road safety is a priority for this government and we are making good progress towards meeting the ambitious 2020 targets set out in Scotland’s Road Safety Framework.

"Safety cameras have been shown to play an important part in helping to achieve these road casualty reductions and as such, this US$3.8 million investment that will see all wet film safety cameras that detect speeding upgraded to digital technology. This will increase their capacity and in doing so help contribute further towards keeping our roads safe."

There are currently 168 fixed safety camera sites across Scotland. Fifty eight of these are on the trunk road network and the others on local authority roads spread across four safety camera partnership areas: Lothian and Borders (63); North East (29); Strathclyde (63) and Tayside (13).  Many of the existing cameras that are rotated between sites have been in use since the early 1990s and are reaching the end of their serviceable life. The availability of spare parts is diminishing and increased repair times are becoming an increasing problem.

This US$3.8 million investment covers the cost of buying new cameras and upgrading or replacing the existing poles and housings, as well as the associated viewing equipment in each of the four back offices where the information on offences will be administered.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ITS World Congress debates perceptions of enforcement
    December 4, 2012
    The technical programme of this year’s ITS World Congress in Vienna includes a special session on the image of enforcement. ITS International examines the scale of the problem and what can be done about it. Debate on the merits and difficulties of enforcing speed limits appears centred on a conflict of principles. Put very simply, local communities, people living close to busy or hazardous roads, want to see traffic speeds calmed. Drivers on those roads, on the whole, want their principle of freedom to be m
  • Idaho adds human dimension to winter savings
    September 23, 2014
    Idaho leverages the increased capability and reliability of its road weather sensor network to reduce costs and prevent accidents. Weather-related accidents can form a significant chunk of an authorities’ annual road casualty statistics. While authorities cannot control the weather, the technology exists to monitor the road conditions and react with warnings to motorists and the treatment of icy or snow-covered roads. However, with all capital expenditure now placed under the microscope of public scrutiny,
  • Cubic signs contract with Transport Scotland
    October 7, 2015
    Cubic is celebrating the signing of a landmark contract with Transport Scotland here at the 2015 ITS World Congress, to support delivery of the Traffic Scotland service. The deal, worth an estimated €XX million, extends Cubic’s 20 year history of delivering services for Transport Scotland.
  • ITS asset management matters
    April 26, 2013
    Maintenance of on-road ITS kit needs to become more sophisticated; while new technologies can deliver better road maintenance. David Crawford investigates both sides of the issue "Good information is key to effective ITS asset maintenance,” says Ian Routledge of the Ian Routledge Consultancy (IRC), whose Imtrac (Information Management for TRAffic Control) system is poised for European expansion. Developed as an ‘intelligent filing cabinet’ for storing information about on-road equipment, the online database