Speed Cameras! Good? Or Bad?

Question

Good idea? Or bad idea?! I really can't decide! The government make so much money from the fines every year, but do the cameras actually reduce accidents? Or are they just finding another way for us to line their pockets? What do you think?

Answer 1

Like everyone else on this planet, I hate speed cameras, not that I drive fast in the wrong places, but that I am so aware I can get points if I commit a minor indiscretion in the wrong place.
The hype says that road deaths are markedly reduced where cameras are deployed. That is possibly true. However, they do not stop the boy racers where they are not deployed. And frankly it would be impossible to do so.
On the road, we need to be safe and aware at all times. I think that too many cameras will be like going through customs all the time ...
I like the glowing electric slow down signs that light up when you enter a restricted area .... they really make people aware without the need for enforcement ... and they actually slow down as well! And we are seeing so much more of them now ... full points for that!
But we will always have idiots on the road, aggressive drivers, people who intimidate others, people who always overtake on double whites, people who drive menacingly .... we simply need to see more traffic police to spot such people and enforce against.
My tip? ... avoid the school run times and mothers in four by fours ...... now that is the biggest black spot ever!

Answer 2

Mostly a dumb idea. It doesn't do anything to address the much more common causes of accidents. People randomly switching lanes, never using a turn signal, riding people's bumpers ( Though some people should be pulled over for impeding traffic and thus encouraging that sort of thing ! ) About the only cameras I don't have as much of a problem with would be the traffic light cameras. I am getting SO tired of watching people blow through red lights ! Pushing it on yellow is bad enough, but when three people go through AFTER it's turned red, that's just wrong.

Germany tried putting up cameras to discourage people following others too closely, and it ended up causing more accidents. When idiots would see the cameras and jam on their brakes to avoid getting photographed too close to someone, the guy behind them would end up in THEIR tail. When I read about that, my formerly high opinion of German drivers dropped a bit. When I was over there in the early eighties, I was impressed with how organized and logical they were. Proper signal use, no slowpoke lane hogs; you could have little three wheel trucks putting down the shoulder, and 100mph+ Mercedes in the fast lane, and very few accidents.

Answer 3

Speed cameras are mostly a good idea. The real issue is not making money; it is public safety. IF people know speed cameras are present, they will obey the speed limits. Have you ever noticed how everyone on the highway suddenly slows down to the speed limit when they see a cop car with a radar gun on the shoulder of the road? Yes, and everyone knows that they can get a ticket if they do not slow down. The real purpose of the speed limits are to keep pedestrians and drivers safe. So, in reality, speed cameras are just a not-so-subtle reminder that breaking the law, and endangering others can cost you plenty. And what is so bad about being reminded to obey the speed limits?

Answer 4

The police deal with motoring crimes, it's all they are good at. We all speed at sometime or other. If I had a speed camera near my home I would cut id down an torture it, they do no good at all. Speed does not kill any more in Germany than it does in UK. I have travelled at 175 mph on the autobahn and done the same through Spain. Motorists who spend more time looking for speed traps than concentrating on the road cause more accidents than speeders. This is just another way of taking money from the overtaxed of UK. Police don't give a damn about speeders. Most fatal accidents happen at speeds less than 50mph and even more are caused by those who drive slower than the flow of traffic. The police would install speed cameras in peoples bedrooms, if they could make money at it. Speed doesn't kill,bad drivers kill.

Answer 5

The government (in the UK) CLAIMS that they are not just a way of making money. they also claim that Speed cameras save around 2,000 lives per year.
On the other hand, the motoring organisations claim that they do not save any lives at all, (which sounds a little unlikely I guess).
It comes down to one question, Do you trust the government? Personally, I know what my answer to that question is.

Hey, Back2skewl, have you never seen a speed camera deliberately sited to catch people unawair? On a bit of 4 lane dual carriageway that SHOULD be 70, but inexplicably is 50? Check it out dude, we call it a "Speed trap".

Answer 6

Bad,cameras only catch drivers who speed,police catch drunk,drugged drivers,cameras are emotionless you can't plead with them or offer a reason why you are in a rush,the fines metered out by the police from these cameras are illegal because you are found guilty without a magistrate or jury also you are not cautioned for your so called crime,if everyone fought this system the cameras would soon be pulled down ,bear this in mind next time a ticket is posted through your letter box

Answer 7

Sorry but cameras are policing on the cheap to make the maximum in fines.A police traffic officer as discretion and would probably issue a warning for ten miles an hour on a deserted road at four in the morning.The same officer would arrest a drunk with no insurance and tax a camera doesn't.

Answer 8

it is not only used for catching speeders,. they also use them to monitor traffic flows and accidents that may happen at a heavily used intersection, alot of Big brother nuts think it is Goverment trying to eaze their way into our lives, give me a frickin break people get a life....speeders get the tickets not the Cameras cathing them... You don't want a ticket then don't speed, run a red light or cause an accident by talking on ur cell phone or rubber necking as you watch someone else get into an accident, just make it home Alive

Answer 9

Logically, they make sense as a deterrent - most people need sticks rather than carrots - but obviously after a while motorists get wise to them.
I can't believe that SATNAVs warn you when you are about to reach a speed camera - talk about encouraging people to 'play the system'.

Answer 10

They are a good idea that is being abused.

If they were placed outside schools or in residential areas to keep speeds down, no one would complain. Instead they are placed to maximise revenue hence the public are unhappy.

Speed doesn't kill. Bad driving does.