01 April 2011
From: Brake, the road safety charity
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Brake has welcomed the news that speed cameras in Oxfordshire have been switched back on, but slammed recent decisions by some local authorities to turn some or all of their cameras off.
Julie Townsend, campaigns director at Brake, said: “Switching speed cameras in Oxfordshire back on is great news for communities across the county, who have suffered from increased vehicle speeds and more dangerous roads in the past few months. In this short space of time, police in Oxfordshire have seen the detrimental and very significant effect of turning off cameras on road safety. This tallies with comprehensive academic studies showing the effectiveness in cameras in tackling speeding and helping to prevent needless and devastating deaths and injuries.”
“At the same time, it is outrageous that speed cameras are still being switched off in some parts of the country. Turning off cameras removes a vital deterrent against speeding – a dangerous and illegal act that all too often leads to tragedy – and leaves communities, particularly vulnerable road users, exposed to the perils of fast traffic. Local authorities have been put in a difficult position by Government cuts to road safety funding, but we urge them to do everything they can to keep cameras running, putting the safety of local residents first.”
Read more on evidence on the effectiveness of speed cameras.
