Police to invest speeding fines in more cameras

The Government will announce today that cash raised from speeding fines can be used to buy more roadside cameras.

John Spellar, the minister for Transport, will say that a one-year pilot scheme that allowed police forces to use the proceeds of fines to buy more cameras to install on dangerous stretches of road is to be extended nationally. But, under the new scheme, the cameras must be "clearly visible" to drivers, the minister will say, because "the aim is to stop accidents not to catch motorists".

The policy is expected to be ridiculed by road traffic campaigners, who say visible cameras will fail to catch the most dangerous drivers. The Government, however, will argue that evidence shows drivers slow down as they approach obvious speed cameras.

A government report published today shows that, in the eight areas included in the pilot scheme, the number of people killed or injured in speed-related accidents fell by 47 per cent and the number of drivers speeding near cameras fell from 55 per cent to 16 per cent.

Mr Spellar will say: "Police forces round the country are now able to form a partnership with local traffic authorities and magistrates' courts and apply to join the scheme under the conditions I have outlined.

"I believe that many will want to do so ... However, we are clear that the aim is to stop accidents not catch motorists and to ensure that safety cameras must be clearly visible."

The Department of Transport will recommend that local authorities locate cameras at sites which have the worst records for accidents.

An analysis of camera sites shows that drivers reduce their speed by an average of 4.2 mph per when approaching a camera, and the Government believes additional cameras will stop many drivers breaking the speed limit.

The study of 250 speed camera sites showed there were 379 fewer collisions near them and 109 fewer people were killed or injured as a result. It estimated that £27m was saved during the one-year pilots in Cleveland, Essex, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, Northamptonshire, South Wales, Strathclyde and Thames Valley.

Four more police forces – Derbyshire, Lancashire, North Wales and Staffordshire – will join the scheme today with others applying later this year.

The AA said support among drivers for speed cameras was waning. In a survey of more than 500 motorists, 41 per cent found cameras "very acceptable" in 2001 – down from 53 per cent in 1999.

Andrew Howard, the motoring organisation's head of road safety, said: "Public support for cameras is crucial. The public become uneasy when police are allowed access to fine revenues and, with more police forces set to use fine revenue to cover the cost of using cameras, they must be as open as possible about funding, signing and siting of cameras."