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Safety camera funding to change

Transport secretary Alistair Darling last week announced plans to revise the way safety cameras are funded. He announced the changes while launching a report that provides 'clear proof' that safety cameras save lives.

Under the changes, from 2007/8 cameras will no longer be funded by money from speeding fines - they will be integrated into wider local authority road safety activity such as junction improvements or speed limit changes. There will also be new requirements to improve the signposting of cameras.

Safety cameras in Wales will become the responsibility of the Welsh National Assembly from the end of 2007/08.

Mr Darling announced the new measures when launching a government-commissioned report on camera effectiveness.

Researchers from University College London and PA Consulting visited 4,000 camera sites across the UK over a four-year period.

They found there was a 42% reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured at camera sites and 22% fewer personal injury collisions.

Mr Darling said the report provided 'clear proof' that safety cameras save lives, but he said he wanted cameras to be linked more closely to wider road safety.

Motoring groups welcomed the new measures.

"Road and junction layout, clearer signing of limits, and better driver education all have a role to play," said Edmund King , of the RAC Foundation.

The AA Motoring Trust agreed, saying that dividing the debate up into pro and anti-camera lobby groups 'misses the point'. "The reality is that speed cameras work alongside other measures... but are not the universal remedy some advocates claim," the trust's Andrew Howard said.

Kevin Clinton, RoSPA head of road safety, said the study demonstrated how 'incredibly effective' cameras are in cutting casualties.  

"The new funding arrangements will allow a far wider range of road safety measures to be used, helping to ensure the best possible remedy for individual trouble spots," he said. "Money from cameras is not being taken away from road safety, but becomes part of a bigger fund to help local authorities with specific initiatives.

"Improved signage of speed cameras and speed limits is something RoSPA has advocated for a long time."

For the full story go to: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4530464.stm