Skip to main content

Speed cameras switched back on in Avon and Somerset

Speed cameras across Avon and Somerset in the UK are beginning to be switched back on for the first time since 2011, marking the beginning of a road safety project that will see a total of 29 static cameras become operational again. They were switched off when Government funding was withdrawn for the joint local authority and police Safety Camera Partnership. The cameras will be switched back on in a phased programme, exact dates yet to be confirmed, over the coming weeks and months. Revenue raised from the
February 24, 2015 Read time: 3 mins
RSSSpeed cameras across Avon and Somerset in the UK are beginning to be switched back on for the first time since 2011, marking the beginning of a road safety project that will see a total of 29 static cameras become operational again.

They were switched off when Government funding was withdrawn for the joint local authority and police Safety Camera Partnership.

The cameras will be switched back on in a phased programme, exact dates yet to be confirmed, over the coming weeks and months. Revenue raised from them will be used to fund their maintenance and enforcement.

113 RedSpeed International is working in conjunction with Avon and Somerset police to switch the cameras back. The first camera has now gone live; the remainder will become operational in due course.

Outside of London this is the first implementation of RedSpeed’s new back office software suite, RedSpeed 360, a suite of software to download, view check, report and export offences to third party evidence processing systems. It is used to setup, configure and tailor RedSpeed Sites as well as retrieve statistical data from RedSpeed sites. One of its key features is that it can manage multiple sites from a single server, and if one site does go down, the remaining sites will continue to function normally.

Avon and Somerset Police’s Road Safety Superintendent Richard Corrigan said: “The ongoing work we have undertaken with our partners to reinstate static speed cameras in the force area is based on national research showing that cameras add value to road safety. 27 per cent of priority issues raised with the police relate to speeding vehicles in our communities. Also, there was camera infrastructure worth more than two million pounds lying dormant on the roadsides in the force area. We believe that the static cameras can be operated in a cost-neutral way and that reactivating them for use alongside our mobile camera vans will help in making our roads safer.”

Police and Crime Commissioner Sue Mountstevens said: “This is a positive move which will improve the safety of roads across Avon and Somerset. I know from speaking to people how important road safety is to them and many have been pressing to have the cameras in their communities turned back on as soon as possible. I’m pleased that I can now tell them they are back on.

“Static cameras will complement the work of the mobile speed enforcement vans and motorbikes that already work across Avon and Somerset and together they send a powerful message to drivers that speeding is being taken seriously.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Technology advances improve enforcement
    July 26, 2012
    Across the board, technology is being brought to bear to improve the efficiency of enforcement. Bus lane monitoring, parking and controlled access have all benefited from systems introduced in recent months. While speed and red light infringements tend to attract the most attention, there remain several other areas of enforcement where automation can bring significant operational and efficiency benefits. Lane monitoring and access control also continue to benefit from technological development.
  • Need for best practice enforcement standards
    February 3, 2012
    Leading systems suppliers discuss how recent events in Italy have affected the automated enforcement sector and how the situation might be remediated
  • EU rules extend the ‘long arm of the law’
    November 27, 2013
    New EU legislation allows authorities to collect fines from errant foreign motorists even after they have returned to their own country. New European Union legislation means drivers in many Member States can be prosecuted for breaking traffic laws when driving outside their home country. While not all the Member States will not be signing up to Directive 2011/82/EU facilitating the cross-border exchange of information on road safety related traffic offences, for those that do the deadline date to impleme
  • TfL upgrades London’s speed and red light safety cameras
    September 18, 2014
    Transport for London (TfL) has begun work on a programme to overhaul the capital’s road safety camera network; replacing hundreds of old wet film cameras with modern and more efficient digital safety cameras in order to help further reduce casualties on London’s roads. According to TfL, safety cameras have proved successful in reducing road casualties in recent years. At locations where safety cameras operate in the capital, research shows that the number of people killed or seriously injured (KSI) fell