$50m Victoria speed camera blitz aimed to lower road carnage
From Sunday Herald Sun
By Liam Houlihan
July 12, 2009
LEADFOOT motorists face a massive crackdown, with a phalanx of extra fixed and mobile speed cameras to be deployed within weeks.
In the biggest expansion of Victoria's speed-trap network since the late 1980s, 31 new fixed cameras will be erected and another 22 existing sites upgraded.
And mobile cameras will be snapping away for an extra 3000 hours a month a 50 per cent increase on current hours.
The blitz which police hope will drive the state's road toll below 300 is also expected to result in hundreds of thousands more fines and extra revenue of more than $48 million.
"It's going to be really, really aggressive," Deputy Commissioner Ken Lay said.
"I'm sure some parts of the community will probably have a bit of a whinge, but we're really confident this will take us to the next level." |
The blitz will focus on major events, road accident black spots in regional Victoria and Melbourne's eastern suburbs.
Authorities hope the campaign will prevent hundreds of deaths and injuries.
The camera campaign will see new devices erected across the state within weeks and includes:
A ROLLOUT of 31 new speed and red-light intersection cameras some to regional areas police say have never had a camera;
UPGRADING 22 wet film cameras to more efficient digital devices;
AN increase in mobile camera hours from 6000 to 9000 a month.
It is the single biggest boost to the state's speed-camera network since the devices were introduced in 1986.
The Sunday Herald Sun can reveal the locations of the 53 new and upgraded cameras.
Areas under greater surveillance include suburbs, such as Casey in the east, with lots of younger, often reckless drivers, police said.
Extra mobile camera hours will also be used for big events such as the F1 Grand Prix, the AFL Grand Final, the Motorcycle Grand Prix and during Christmas.
Roads and Ports Minister Tim Pallas said the Brumby Government move would save lives and make roads safer.
"We are committed to road safety, setting an ambitious goal to cut the road toll and reduce serious injuries by 30 per cent by 2017 as part of the Arrive Alive strategy," Mr Pallas said.
"Victorians can be sure that people who put others at risk by speeding or running red lights will be caught."
Authorities said cameras were part of continuing tactics to tackle the road toll and reduce crash trauma.
"We're looking for that silver bullet that takes us to that next level, which will put us alongside the world's best," Mr Lay said.
"This sort of rollout of so many cameras will help us.
"I'm confident next year we will be talking about the difference they've made."
By the end of October mobile cameras will patrol for 9000 hours a month up from 6000 in high-risk areas across the state.
Speed camera revenue has been a boon for successive Victorian governments, with a motorist caught speeding every minute and an estimated $437.2 million in fine revenue expected in the current financial year.
But police said the initiative was strictly about preventing deaths and injury.
"The money side of things I don't give a tinker's cuss about," Mr Lay said.
"My only interest is road trauma levels."
He said the last major rollout of speed cameras led to a big drop in fatalities.
