Why do you call them 'Safety Cameras' when they are really just Speed Cameras?
The term 'Safety Camera' is the collective term used to refer to red light cameras (cameras sites at traffic lights to deter and detect red light running) and mobile and fixed speed cameras.
How are partnerships funded?
Partnerships are grant funded by the Scottish Safety Camera Programme. The money allocated is based on the operational case submitted by the safety camera partnership. This grant can only be used for safety camera enforcement.
Previously, partnerships were funded on a "cost recovery" basis. Partnerships were allowed to recover the costs of safety camera activity from fine revenue. The money funded the work undertaken by safety camera partnerships. This included equipment costs, enforcement and processing costs, as well as communication costs for public information campaigns aimed at changing driver behaviour.
How is the Programme Governed?
There are two levels of project governance and management; at local level and at national level.
Governance and Management
Locally there are different levels of governance provided by a Project Office and a Project Board (or Steering Group). In many cases partnerships will also have a Working Group. The Project Board or Steering Group provides strategic direction for the project and oversees performance at a local level.
National Governance
The Scottish Safety Camera Programme Office supports and monitors the activity of partnerships. The Programme Office reports to the Scottish Advisory Board which oversees the strategic direction of the scheme in Scotland and gives advice to the Scottish Government. The Scottish Advisory Board sits quarterly with membership including the Scottish Government (including Crown Office), Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland (ACPOS), Society of Chiefs of Transport Scotland (SCOTS), District Courts Association, COSLA, Scottish Road Safety Campaign, Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), a Scottish Partnership Project Manager, and a rotating seat between key motoring organisations (RAC/AA/British Motorcyclists Federation). Observers also attend from the Scottish Programme Office, HM Treasury, Department for Transport and the Driving Standards Agency.
Isn't this just a way of raising revenue?
No. Partnerships no longer recover their costs from fines generated through safety camera enforcement. All fine revenue is returned to HM Treasury. This is to ensure that the only reason for partnerships to participate in the Programme is to reduce casualties. Partnerships DO NOT make profits.
The Programme is constructed to ensure that cameras are placed where they are needed most in order to reduce casualties. That is why there must have been a history of crashes and casualties before a new camera can be determined as part of the Programme. Strict accounting procedures apply and partnerships are externally audited to ensure that all expenditure is in line with the rules for the Programme. Cameras ARE NOT erected to raise revenue. They ARE erected to make you safer on Scotland's roads.
But isn't the increased use of speed cameras just another stealth tax on the mororist?
No. Partnerships operate under strict rules governing where safety cameras can be used and funded as part of the Programme. Remember the only people who will pay anything are those who break the law. You can choose not to pay - STAY SAFE - STAY WITHIN THE SPEED LIMIT.
For the vast majority of law-abiding people safety cameras will have a positive impact. Reductions in crashes lessens the demands on health and emergency services' resources which will benefit us all. A high speed serious injury crash costs the NHS up to £100,000 in emergency, hospital and after-care services.
But whatever the monetary saving to society there is no way of quantifying the pain, suffering and grief of the friends and relatives of casualties.
What happens to fine revenue and why can’t it be channelled back into road safety?
Fine revenue generated through the use of safety cameras is returned to HM Treasury. HM Treasury then decide where this money will be spent.
Isn't the hypothecation scheme going to be abolished?
Yes. In December 2005, the Department for Transport announced their intention to end hypothecation (cost-recovery) for partnerships , from April 2007. The Scottish Executive has decided to continue funding safety camera activity through grant funding. This new funding arrangement began on 1st April 2007.
Isn’t this just a method of punishing motorists?
On the contrary, safety cameras benefit all road users, including motorists. Safety cameras have already been shown to save lives. More effective, targeted use of the cameras will save even more lives, many of which will be motorists. The only people who will pay are those who break the law by speeding.
The scheme turns motorists into criminals?
Driving over the speed limit is an offence. We want to encourage all motorists to have full regard for speed limits and to improve their driving. That is the best way we can address the unacceptable number of accidents on our roads.
How will I know where cameras are?
The location of mobile cameras is published routinely by partnerships - usually on partnership web sites. The "CamFinder" on the home page of this website will also tell you where cameras are.
Fixed site safety cameras are highly visible, with distinctive red and yellow housings in line with the Programme rules. Officers engaged in mobile camera enforcement will be operating in conspicuously marked vehicles and will wear bright fluorescent clothing. Signs telling drivers of the presence of speed cameras are also clearly placed ahead of the camera location. Red light cameras are not marked with red and yellow housings. This is because, for road safety reasons, it is considered that they might distract attention from the lights themselves.
Remember though that the local police Chief Constable has the discretion to operate covert or hidden enforcement at any time. So while the partnership may not operate in other areas the police might be and you will not always be aware of it. The easiest way to avoid being caught is to STAY SAFE – STAY WITHIN THE SPEED LIMIT.
Are the cameras easy to see?
We couldn't make it any easier. Not only are safety cameras clearly marked but partnerships go to considerable lengths to make sure you know where they are. This is because we don't want to catch speeding drivers, we want to prevent drivers from speeding.
Fixed cameras are marked with highly visible red and yellow housings. Officers and vehicles used for mobile enforcement are clearly identified. Warning signs are erected in advance of a camera site. Partnerships publish details of sites on their websites and engage with local newspapers to have sites published - many on a weekly basis. The Scottish Safety Camera Programme website now makes it possible to see the locations of cameras across the whole of Scotland. [Red light cameras may not be marked with red and yellow housings. This is because, for road safety reasons, it is considered that they might distract attention from the lights themselves.]
Remember though that the local police Chief Constable has the discretion to operate covert or hidden enforcement at any time. So while the partnership may not operate in other areas the police might be and you will not always be aware of it. The easiest way to avoid being caught is to STAY SAFE - STAY WITHIN THE SPEED LIMIT.
Why make cameras so obvious? If you speed you deserve to be caught.
Cameras are there to make sure motorists drive within the speed limit. They are there to prevent speeding. This is best served by making cameras very obvious. Those who continue to speed despite all the signs and indications will be caught.
Is it true that the offence is not valid if the camera isn't yellow and red?
No. The Government guidelines for high visibility enable the partnership to be eligible to recover the operational costs for camera enforcement. The camera colour does not change the legal status of cameras if you have been caught speeding.
Are some cameras hidden?
The Scottish Safety Camera Programme does not operate hidden or "covert" cameras. The rules of the Programme adhered to by partnerships across Scotland means drivers are made aware of camera enforcement through road signage and camera markings. However, Chief Constables have the autonomy to carry out covert enforcement when it is considered appropriate. This is outside the scope of the Programme and the costs cannot be recovered.
Will our roads end up littered with safety cameras?
The number of safety cameras on Scotland's roads should be dictated by the number and nature of accidents on our roads at any point in time. This doesn’t mean that we are heading for a huge increase in the number of cameras but if they are needed to reduce casualties and make us all safer then the number may increase. Partnerships review camera sites on an annual basis to ensure that they are targeting the sites in most need of speed and casualty reduction and that they are tackling any emerging casualty problems.
What criteria are used to select sites for cameras?
Cameras are located where there is a track record of crashes, a speeding problem has been identified and where a partnership believes the installation of a camera or camera site would improve road safety.
The rules for the siting of safety cameras have been developed to have the most positive road safety benefit.
The claim that speed cameras have halved accidents at camera sites is flawed?
Independent research published in June 2004 (by University College London and PA Consulting Group) found that killed or seriously injured casualties at camera sites reduced by 40% after the introduction of cameras. But it has been acknowledged that this analysis did not take full account of a concept called "regression to mean", ie that some of the reduction would probably have happened anyway. However, recent research by the Transport Research Laboratory for Transport for London has studied this effect and shows that even when this concept is taken into account, cameras still contribute over 20% reduction in accidents involving fatal or serious casualties.
December 2005, University College London and the PA Consulting Group published an updated assessment of the programme, the Year 4 report. They commissioned Linda Mountain, University of Liverpool, who has spent many years investigating RTM, and had done some work in relation to a small sample of cameras, to undertake a piece of work using her methodology for inclusion in the report.
It estimates that the average scheme effect of the 216 sites on Fatal and Serious Collisions, after allowing for both trends and RTM, is as follows:
52 fixed cameras 24% reduction
164 mobile cameras 17% reduction
The report concludes that if these results were typical, cameras would still provide substantial and valuable casualty benefits.
What is the evidence that cameras work?
The latest independent Report of the first 4 years of the UK Safety Camera Programme's operation published in December 2005 concluded that in the UK, deaths and serious injuries were cut by 42 percent over and above the national trend after the introduction of safety cameras. The report undertaken by University College London and PA Consulting Group covers the period from 2000-01 to 2003-04 and includes the results for 38 safety camera partnerships that had been operational for at least a full year during that time.
This 42% reduction equates to over 100 fewer deaths and 1,745 fewer deaths and serious injuries per year.
The report also shows that there was a 22 percent reduction in personal injury collisions, amounting to 4,230 fewer per year while average speeds at new sites fell by around 6% or around 2.2 mph.
The report also concludes that even after taking into account the effect of regression to mean (RTM), cameras still provide substantial and valuable casualty benefit.
How do you determine whether a site is suitable for mobile or fixed camera enforcement?
Fixed site cameras have been shown to have a very positive effect where there has been a particular cluster of crashes and casualties around a specific point on a road. The installation of a fixed site camera can reduce speeds at this point and encourage greater compliance with the speed limit. This can reduce accidents and has been shown to reduce casualties.
Mobile enforcement is often used where casualties are distributed along a stretch of road. It allows a partnership to operate a mobile vehicle along that stretch in order to encourage compliance with the speed limit over that stretch. While mobile vehicles may not be present all the time, they can enforce at that site at any time so STAY SAFE - STAY WITHIN THE SPEED LIMIT. Remember the police can enforce on any stretch of road outside the Programme.
How do you know the cameras are accurate?
Cameras used by safety camera partnerships are 'type-approved' by the Home Office and are calibrated by their manufacturer once a year. A copy of a calibration certificate is available on request.
Below is a link to all type-approved speed detection devices
http://police.homeoffice.gov.uk/news-and-publications/publication/operational-policing/approved-speed-meters/
In addition, mobile safety cameras are checked daily.
Isn't the use of safety cameras a violation of my human rights?
The Human Rights Act came into being in October 2000. The Privy Council upheld a ruling on a case in Scotland in December 2000, which clearly indicates that the Human Rights Act is NOT infringed under this process.