Drivers duped by the cameras which don’t exist

A study by independent reviewer Which? recently revealed that only 47 per cent of the yellow boxes on roads in England and Wales actually have cameras inside them, while the rest are sitting empty and powerless to catch speeding motorists.

In Warwickshire, 62 per cent of the 34 cameras are currently in use on a rotating basis, but county councillor Richard Hobbs, responsible for community safety, says more may have to go in efforts to save money.

He said: “Speed cameras are a positive but for the county council, it’s a cost to put them there.

“We do need to be flexible in moving our cameras about to where the accidents are happening. Probably because of the funding situation, we will have to have fewer than we do at the moment.

“We want to make sure they are in appropriate places to reduce accidents. I think we will have more support from the public if the few cameras which are in areas where they may not be useful are removed.”

Warwickshire Police figures show that between April 2010 and January this year, 24 people were killed and 230 seriously injured on the county’s roads, while Government statistics show that on average, nine people are killed and 85 injured on UK roads each day.

The Government, which receives the money from speeding fines, claims that without the cameras, 100 more would be killed every year.

Butlers Marston student Kelly Marsh, 20, was killed in a road incident in Kineton in 2005 and her mother Jane, who has since been a staunch road safety campaigner, is inclined to agree.

She said: “If people are worrying about speed cameras, perhaps it’s because they are speeding.

“Cameras serve the purpose of reminding people there is a speed restriction on that road and for a damn good reason. Drivers don’t know if they are working or not – they are making them look at their speedometer.

“But the money raised from fines should be given to the local authority so they can use it to make the roads safer.”