New speed cameras for NI

A new speed camera which stops motorists from camera surfing - braking sharply before a speed camera - is to be introduced by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

The system uses pairs of cameras separated by distances of up to 10 kms to create a speed zone.

A vehicle's speed is measured by the time it takes to travel between the cameras.

Chief Inspector Rosemary Leech, of the Road Policing Development department in the PSNI, said the new technology would allow police officers control vehicle speed on longer stretches of road.

She said average speeds had plummeted on roads in Britain where it is already in use.

Chief Inspector Leech said the strength of the system was that it allowed someone to exceed the limit briefly, as in the case of over taking, providing their average speed remained under the limit.

"The rational behind us going with this system is that it forces drivers into compliance with speed limits for a longer stretch of road. It negates the issue of surfing cameras, where drivers slow at the point of a camera and then speed up again," she said.

The system is being introduced along the A1 from Belfast to Newry and will feature a series of zones, each using a pair of cameras for every lane of traffic.

Vehicles that change lanes in the speed zone are also measured.

Each camera takes pictures of the vehicle as it passes, allowing police to read the number plate of the vehicle and giving an average speed for the vehicle while in the zone.

"The A1 will be the first route to use this, there may be others. It is important to note it is not a cheap system and the fines are unlikely to cover it. It is a compliance tool.

"From our colleagues elsewhere we understand that we can never hope to recoup the cost. It does not generate a huge number of speeding tickets and so is not used for revenue generation."

The SPECS system is expected to go live in April, joining the existing eight mobile cameras and four fixed cameras used by the PSNI Road Policing unit.

Earlier this month it was reported that Northern Ireland's cameras had detected 66,500 motorists speeding since they were introduced in 2002, leading to £4 million in fines.

When complete, a series of speed zones will stretch along the A1, with all cameras linked to Newry Police Station where the information can be downloaded in real time.

Northern Ireland has the highest rate of deaths and injuries per head of population in the UK.

The Minister for Transport Mr Martin Cullen has said he will shortly bring legislation for the introduction of privatised speed cameras.

The positioning of cameras will be directed by gardaí with the private firm handling the administration of the scheme.

A recent study by the National Roads Authority showed that the number of car drivers ignoring speed limits on non-national roads had jumped eight-fold to 63 per cent last year.

The introduction of penalty points for speeding three years ago saw the number of road deaths drop to a 40-year low before climbing again in the last two years.

To date this year 64 people have been killed on the roads.