Speed Cameras

20-06-2004, 22:52

If your approaching a speed camera which is on the other side of the road and is one that takes pictures from the back of your car, and it goes off, can you still get fined?

The camera was on the other side of the road.

The car was approaching the camera and not going past it as the camera was intended.

There are no lines on the side of the road appriacing the camera either (but are some of the side of the road where the camera is.)

Secondly if its at night and that happens and it distracts you by the blinding light flashing twice and surely this could cause an accident?

**Russ** · 20-06-2004, 22:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by gary_580

If your approaching a speed camera which is on the other side of the road and is one that takes pictures from the back of your car, and it goes off, can you still get fined?

No - the standard fixed cameras like the one you are probably talking about will only snap you if you are travelling away from it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gary_580

Secondly if its at night and that happens and it distracts you by the blinding light flashing twice and surely this could cause an accident?

In theory yes, but the flashes are so instantanious that they are not likely to pose any real danger.

20-06-2004, 22:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Russ D

No - the standard fixed cameras like the one you are probably talking about will only snap you if you are travelling away from it.

In theory yes, but the flashes are so instantanious that they are not likely to pose any real danger.

hmmm well i was travelling towards one at 1am and there were no other cars, but it still went off??

Chris W · 20-06-2004, 23:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by gary_580

If your approaching a speed camera which is on the other side of the road and is one that takes pictures from the back of your car, and it goes off, can you still get fined?

The camera was on the other side of the road.

The car was approaching the camera and not going past it as the camera was intended.

There are no lines on the side of the road appriacing the camera either (but are some of the side of the road where the camera is.)

Secondly if its at night and that happens and it distracts you by the blinding light flashing twice and surely this could cause an accident?

As far as i know you will not get fined, because the markings on the road are what is used to determine your speed. If you were on the other side of the road you may not even have been in the picture. I remember a case a few years ago about taking pictures of people from the front is invasion of privacy under the ECHR (European Convention on Human Rights) but i am sure it won't come down to this!

Also i guess yes if you are distracted and crash then you could blame the camera, but i very much doubt you would be able to claim compensation from the speed camera unit of your local police force (i mean think how little money they must have!!). However you if someone was speeding through it when it went off and you crashed, a very good lawyer may be able to bring a successful civil action for the damage against the speeding motorist, but i don't see this being very likely.

If you are bored, you can always tie a tin can to a piece of string and swing it round infront of a speed camera, because when it reaches a certain speed it will make the camera go off

MB

**Russ** · 20-06-2004, 23:00

That's very odd - standard speed cameras are not designed to work like that and require some kind of marked distance for an accurate reading, such as the white lines you normally see.

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeybreath

If you are bored, you can always tie a tin can to a piece of string and swing it round infront of a speed camera, because when it reaches a certain speed it will make the camera go off

Why am I only learning about this now????

*legs it down the road with a tin can and some string....

punky · 20-06-2004, 23:01

This happened to me recently, I never got the NIP. I did a lot of research at the time, it seems like the rear-flashing-Gatsos, that flash at on-coming cars are dummy units with cheap radar detectors that can't tell the difference between a positive speed (like normal), and a negative one (driving towards the camera). Apparently a friend of my friend (who was also flashed with me) told him that he drives passed the same camera all the time speeding, and never gets caught. I think even if it did take pictures of your car, they couldn't use them because there are only lines on the other side of the road, with the whole "Error Of Parallax" thing. If it flashed, then i'm 99.99% sure it wasn't a front picture taking camera like a TrueVelo, although apparently someone people have sworn they flashed, even though they have an infra-red flash, which you aren't supposed to see.

HTH and rests your mind a little.

20-06-2004, 23:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeybreath

If you are bored, you can always tie a tin can to a piece of string and swing it round infront of a speed camera, because when it reaches a certain speed it will make the camera go off

MB

PMSL

iadom · 20-06-2004, 23:07

I liked the story of the guy yesterday, who had been caught speeding a couple of times, he noticed a police camera and drove past at 20 MPH and put not 2, but 4 fingers, 2 on each hand, up to the camera. He was fined for driving without due care and attention for taking both hands of the wheel.

**Russ** · 20-06-2004, 23:10

http://www.ukspeedcameras.co.uk/guide.htm

A pretty comprehensive site on all GATSO related matters.

Nikko · 20-06-2004, 23:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeybreath

If you are bored, you can always tie a tin can to a piece of string and swing it round infront of a speed camera, because when it reaches a certain speed it will make the camera go off

MB

Do not use a beer or cider can though - the penalties for speeding under the influence are much higher

20-06-2004, 23:16

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nikko

Do not use a beer or cider can though - the penalties for speeding under the influence are much higher

getting caught speeding while your swinging could be even worse!!

Temporal · 20-06-2004, 23:16

Where in Peterborough wa the speed camera Gary?

The one on the way out of Whittlesey to Stanground has flashed me three times and I've never heard anything!!

I have friends in the force who told me that pictures in this situation are usually blank.

20-06-2004, 23:19

The one on Oundle Road outside side of Orton Longville school

Nikko · 20-06-2004, 23:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by gary_580

getting caught speeding while your swinging could be even worse!!

Just call up the Government and ask for a spin doctor

Xaccers · 20-06-2004, 23:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkeybreath

As far as i know you will not get fined, because the markings on the road are what is used to determine your speed.

The radar in the Gatso determines your speed, not the white lines.
They can be used to give a rough confirmation of your speed should you contest the accuracy of the camera recorded speed.
A case I heard about involved a man going through roadworks.
The camera recorded him doing quite a bit more than the speed limit, he knew he wasn't speeding, so contested it.
The police "somehow" missed a few lines when they were counting so it showed him as speeding.
Thankfully his maths skills, along with his solicitor and the magistrate, were somewhat better than the police and showed that he hadn't been speeding.