Bridge hit 19 times in 2018

‘Drivers should know better’

AVERAGE speed cameras which were installed last year have now been turned off again to save money – despite catching thousand of drivers breaking the limit.

Leicestershire County Council turned on enforcement cameras on September 15 on Burton Road in Measham, Lutterworth Road in Walcote and the B4144 in Sharnford.

Between then and November 2 they caught out 7,141 motorists, who each received a £100 fine and three points on their licences.

However, after our sister paper the Leicester Mercury asked for totals about how many people had been caught after that period, it has now emerged County Hall turned the three cameras off again on November 2.

The council has refused to say when they will be turned on again.

A council spokesman told the Mercury it was common practice to do this, adding: “The cost of the cameras – as well as the enforcement requirements – means that for many authorities this is standard procedure, regardless of the cameras being fixed or average speed cameras.

“The objective of the trial is to act as a deterrent.

“We are facing a landscape of reduced resources, but we are committed to improving safety by tackling these speeding issues on our roads with the investment in this scheme – and its success so far emphasises that.”

The money from the fines went to the Government, but the council has asked to be able to keep the first £500,000 to pay for the costs of installing a total of seven cameras around the county.

Other cameras on the A6 in Oadby and the A50 in Groby were enabled on November 2 and, by December 12, had caught 1,290.

A further camera in Beacon Road, Woodhouse Eaves, was due to be turned on at the end of December and another on Saxby Road, Freeby, is due to be activated in the coming weeks.

Councillor Blake Pain, the county council cabinet member for environment and transport, said: “We are trialling the average speed enforcement across seven locations to address the concerns of residents and to make the roads as safe as they can be.

“Since the cameras have been switched on, just over three million vehicles have passed sites in Sharnford, Walcote, Measham, Oadby and Groby, with 0.26 per cent of those vehicles issued with notices.

“The trial isn’t about catching and fining motorists for speeding – we want people to stick to the speed limits.

“We hope that these cameras, along with those being installed in Freeby and Woodhouse Eaves, will stop people from speeding as it endangers the lives of other road users and pedestrians.

“If the trial is a success, we’d want to roll it out further, but it is dependent on HM Treasury changing their policy to allow fines to be retained to pay for the cameras.

“Once the cameras are paid for, further fines could then be directed to HM Treasury.”