The New South Wales government is set to tear down 10 speed cameras across the state, because they’re not making a difference to road safety. If you live in any of those lucky locations, no eyesore speed cameras and the comfort of knowing you’re living around cautious and responsible drivers.
Speed camera picture from Shutterstock
Minister for Roads and Freight, Duncan Gay, said in a statement that the government was keeping a commitment it made while in Opposition, promising to remove any speed camera that did not add a proven safety benefit. The 10 locations around the state are as follows:
- Delhi Road, Macquarie Park
- General Holmes Drive, Botany
- Hume Highway, Burwood
- M4 Motorway, Wentworthville
- Sherwood Road, Merrylands West
- Woy Woy Road, Kariong
- Manns Road, West Gosford
- Newcastle Road, Lambton
- New England Highway, Murrurundi
- Blackwall Road, Woy Woy North
They’re getting taken down in the next couple of weeks, but not before increased safety signage, barriers and other speeding deterrents take their places.
While these fixed cameras are being pulled down, that doesn’t mean there will be less monitoring going on on NSW state roads (and, as a general rule, the rest of the country). The 2014 Speed Camera Review of the state’s cameras says that across the four different camera programs — fixed, mobile, point-to-point, and red light speed cameras — are “continuing to improve road safety.”
Early results from the red-light speed, mobile speed and point-to-point camera programs show that drivers are changing their behaviour, which overall is resulting in a reduction in crashes and casualties at camera locations and across the road network. However, with less than five years of operation, it is still too early to assess the longer term effectiveness of these new programs.”
So, basically, while we are getting a few speed cameras ripped out — which is a good thing, if they aren’t contributing to lowering the terrible road death toll (333 people have died on NSW roads in the year to date), expect to see an increase in mobile speed camera units, more red light speed cameras, and more point to point enforcement on freeways and other long-distance driving roads. [NSW Transport]