No more speed cameras on Oxfordshire's roads (From Witney Gazette)

No more speed cameras on Oxfordshire's roads

9:00am Monday 3rd April 2006 in Witney By Emma-Kate Lidbury

THERE will be no more speed cameras installed on Oxfordshire's roads this year.

A temporary ban was placed on setting up any new sites fixed or mobile ones by Transport Secretary, Alistair Darling, last week.

Safety partnerships had to prove to ministers that further cameras were necessary, but the Thames Valley Safer Roads Partnership failed to convince them of the need for more.

Dan Campsall, from the partnership, said: "We have not actually substantially increased the number of speed camera sites for quite a long time, and there will be no new sites over the next 12 months.

"There are, however, various places around Oxfordshire where we do ad hoc speed checks when communities have raised concerns about problems on the roads. We do not have to get those approved, and they will be mobile cameras."

The partnership also had its application for new cameras rejected last year, and will now be forced to turn to other road safety devices, such as speed humps and road markings.

It has been given funding of more than £5m to do this in 2006/7.

Nationally, speed cameras generate £120m in fixed penalty fines, which covers their running costs.

It is predicted that 300,000 motorists will be sent on speed awareness courses after they are rolled out nationally from April 1.