Old unmarked vans to be converted to covert speed cameras

[armthehomeless]

OLD vans that have to be made roadworthy are set to be in the first fleet of covert speed cameras rolled out on Queensland roads.

The reconditioned wrecks will be part of a varied group of vehicles used in the stealth assault on speed.

Police will handpick their fleet and expect to turn an old van worth a few thousand dollars into a vehicle that could reap tens of thousands in fines.

Older vehicles must be restored to roadworthy status, rewired and fitted with airconditioning and powerful batteries. None of the covert cameras will bear police markings.

"If it's going to be a covert operation there will be no signage at all because that would defeat the purpose of it," Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson said yesterday.

"Covert would be truly covert and that would mean anywhere, anytime, any vehicle."

The Courier-Mail, in conjunction with police and the State Government, yesterday launched the "Brake the Habit" campaign aimed at reducing the road toll in 2010.

The Government has already announced plans to boost its anti-speeding strategy, and the first unmarked cameras will start snapping lead-footed motorists from as early as June.

Police have trialled three unmarked vehicles, taken from the existing speed camera fleet of 30 vans.

Police Minister Neil Roberts said up to 30 per cent of speed camera hours would be clocked by unmarked vans.

"If we are serious about reducing the road toll, we have to dramatically change driver behaviour," Mr Roberts said.

"Human factors account for over 90 per cent of road fatalities. Increasing the chance and uncertainty of detection is a powerful motivator in changing driver behaviour."

Queensland's road toll has been below 300 only once in 55 years. In 1998, 279 people died in the first full year speed cameras were deployed.

Queensland is following the Victorian method after that state brought its road toll to its lowest level since records began in 1952.

Victorian roads have been policed by covert cameras for more than 20 years. The cameras have been housed in vans, utes and sedans.

Victoria's top traffic cop said the devices had been one of the most significant factors in their reduced toll.

"We don't announce where they are or where they're going to be," Deputy Commissioner Ken Lay said.

"The research is very, very clear right across the world that if you drop the speed level, you cut the level of road trauma."

Mr Lay said Victoria's fixed cameras were rarely signed for motorists but a website listed full details of all camera locations.

Mr Atkinson conceded it was possible Queensland could move towards the Victorian model where all mobile speed cameras operated covertly.

"It's up to us to show in the course of this year and perhaps beyond that, what's working and what isn't working," Mr Atkinson said.

[Source: The Courier Mail]

[240MPS]

Wow.. To be honest any death is a loss, but comparing figures to over 50 years ago is no comparsion with the amount of cars today to back than.. Ratio of cars on the road today to deaths is no comparision....Everybody will have their opinions... I would like the break down to speeding/fatigue/drunks/etc .....

[Nirvandan]

This is BS!



I guess the 61.5 million they racked in fines last financial year isnt enough.

[bd581]

Don't like the money that is made from fines?
Easy solution to that, don't break the law

as for using old vans, this idea comes up all the time but nothing ever comes from it

I do remember sevral years ago travelling down the Hume hwy a car went past me and I swear there was a flash from the back of a beaten up Volvo wagon on blocks on the side of the road, next to it hidden away was a police car.

[YOU LOSE]

This is BS!



I guess the 61.5 million they racked in fines last financial year isnt enough.

+1 Drivers need to be educated and trained Driver Training Centres need to be an essential part of the licencing process if the police really wanted to reduce the road toll .LOW PERFORMANCE DRIVERS CAUSE DEATHS not High performance cars this is just another money grab .

Col

[bd581]

+1 Drivers need to be educated and trained Driver Training Centres need to be an essential part of the licencing process if the police really wanted to reduce the road toll .LOW PERFORMANCE DRIVERS CAUSE DEATHS not High performance cars this is just another money grab .

Col

While you may be correct, it's not what this is about.
It's about catching speeding drivers, they aren't setting up cameras to catch people in high performance cars.

Speeding is against the law, we all know it is, and we take the chance being caught, we all know what will happen if we get caught, so why complain if we do?
Only person to blame is yourself

[TD]

Don't like the money that is made from fines?
Easy solution to that, don't break the law

When they're also talking about significantly lowering the margin before fines kick in to less than ADR tolerances for speedometer accuracy it's quite frankly BS...not as bad as Victoria yet (63 in a 60 zone), but we're well on the way up here with stuff like this.

It's blatant revenue raising which has absolutely zero to do with increasing safety or reducing the road toll. That's where I and many others have a problem with the speed camera concept. I expect the Queensland road trauma levels (including deaths) to increase when this and their other speed camera related plans come into reality.

As an electorate, when are we going to stand up for ourselves and let our elected representatives know this sort of crap just isn't on? If Australian governments are serious about improving road safety there are plenty of other ways to do it properly, starting with driver training and correct road design/maintenance.

[Nirvandan]

It's blatant revenue raising which has absolutely zero to do with increasing safety or reducing the road toll. That's where I and many others have a problem with the speed camera concept. I expect the Queensland road trauma levels (including deaths) to increase when this and their other speed camera related plans come into reality.

Spot on!

[bd581]

And that is an issue to take up with the ADR rule makers and car manufacturers

however, it doesn't work like you say
you actual road speed is usually less than your indicated speed. So at an indicated 60km/h your probably doing about 58km/h in the average car. So to be booked for doing 64km/h your indicated speed would probably be closer to 66-67km/h

[kmh001]

Speed is a consequence, not a cause of road trauma. In the fullness of time the data will show that the emphasis on speed enforcement will have caused an increase in road trauma, as it has in the NT.

Speed cameras have nothing to do with road safety and everything to do with irresponsible bureaucrats ingratiating themselves with their political masters.

Unfortunately the speeding myth has been cleverly sold to the average person and surveys routinely show that over 50% of people support the use of speed camera's.