Speed cameras 'save lives and offer value for money'

Date: 26/11/2010

Speed cameras make a significant contribution to road safety and save lives, a new report has concluded.

A paper by Professor Richard Allsop of University College London for the RAC Foundation found the devices have offered continued benefits both at camera sites and across the wider road network since their general introduction between 2001 and 2005.

Professor Allsop also dispels the myth that speeding penalties generated by cameras are a significant source of revenue for the government, revealing only £4 of every £60 in fines was net income to the treasury in 2007.

The RAC Foundation is sending a copy of the report to every highway authority in the country to help them make informed decisions about how to spend their reduced budgets.

Earlier this month, RoadSafe applauded Oxfordshire County Council's decision to switch the region's fixed and mobile safety cameras back on after they were turned off at the beginning of August this year due to funding issues.

Posted by Sarah Bailey