Humberside road safety officer shows inside speed camera van
Hundreds of speed cameras across the UK should be removed for one vital reason, according to a leading road safety expert.
Gary Digva, founder of Road Angel, has called for local authorities to remove almost 500 cameras which are inactive and do not work.
Mr Digva said inactive cameras served no purpose and could be a distraction to motorists on the road.
The group also warned that having inactive cameras in place also has the potential to cause a major accident.
It comes after a recent Freedom of Information request revealed a staggering 46 percent of fixed speed cameras were not switched on.
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Analysis of the data shows that a whopping 496 devices were not working out of 1069 across the country.
Mr Digva explained: “We believe if speed cameras are in place then they should be operating. Inactive speed cameras serve no purpose other than to confuse motorists and other road users and could even be dangerous.
“That’s why we decided to make a Freedom of Information Request to the Department of Transport to find out exactly how many fixed speed cameras are actually working out there on our roads.
“We were shocked when our FOI request revealed that almost half of fixed cameras weren’t actually working.
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“At Road Angel we believe speed cameras serve a useful purpose in encouraging motorists to drive safely but our view is that cameras should be working.
“If a camera is inactive and remains so for many months or even years at a time then it begs the question, why is it there?
“Yes it may still play a part in encouraging traffic to slow down but it could also act to distract drivers and potentially cause an accident.”
The statistics show all eight fixed cameras in Northamptonshire were inactive.
Meanwhile, just one device is currently activated out of the 31 fixed cameras located in Gwent.
North Wales has just two active cameras while Derbyshire has only 20 out of their 113 devices online.
Mr Digva added: “Our view is that if cameras are present then drivers should be able to feel assured that they are working. If they are non-operational then they should be removed.
“That is why we are calling on police forces and local authorities across the country to carry out an audit of cameras and remove any non-operational devices as quickly as possible.”
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