Different types of cameras on county roads
MOTORISTS caught speeding will be hit in the pocket with millions of pounds worth of fines dished out every year.
The minimum penalty for speeding is £100 and with at least thee points added to your licence, it can be extremely costly being snared by a camera.
But not all traffic cameras will lead to a fine or points. In fact there are numerous cameras and they often have a different role to play.
Here we identify the ones which catch the speeding motorist and those there to make travelling a bit easier. Gatso - speed camera, fine Since the introduction of speed cameras on Britain’s roads in 1992, it’s the Gatsometer BV speed camera which has become the most commonly used camera on the UK’s roads. now found, of course, in digital format.
They are found all over the country, particularly near accident black-spots.
Mobile camera camera, fine
Operated by police officers, - speed these devices are hand-held or mounted in vans that are normally parked in lay-bys. The cameras either use laser or radar technology.
They can appear anywhere at any time.
Highways Agency CCTV cameras -not a speed camera, no fine
They are used to monitor traffic flows primarily for the purposes of traffic management. They also provide the Highways England with a valuable appreciation of how roadusers make use of the network. This knowledge helps ensure future public-funded investment is used effectively.
NOT used to catch speeding motorists, they are found on motorways and major A-roads. SPECS - speed camera, fine These big boys are able to monitor four lanes simultaneously and are sets of these cameras mounted on gantries. These are equipped with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and photograph every vehicle that passes beneath them.
The data is then sent to another set of cameras further down the road (a minimum of 200m away).
The time that it takes for the vehicle to travel between these two set points is established and a motorist’s average speed between the two points is worked out. Speed fines can result.
Fitted with infra-red illuminators, they work night and day, and in all weathers.
They are found on motorways and dual carriageways all over the country.
Police Automatic Number Plate Recognition - catching criminals, fine even jail time
These record number plates of every passing vehicle, then store information to ‘help detect, deter and disrupt criminality at a local, force, regional and national level’.
Records can be accessed for up to two years.
If a vehicle is of interest to police, officers monitoring it can order a patrol car team to stop the driver and, if necessary, make an arrest.
They are found across the country.