Speed Camera Fines

If you have a look at the map I included, the section of Pambula Beach Road between the 60 and the 50 signs has houses and street lights most of the way along it. Don't know why the 50 sign was put where it was, seems arbitrary to me. In fact, from about where the 50 sign is onwards, there are no houses at all, only industrial units. So they obviously care more about Robert Smith Home Furnishings customers than they do about residents!

Don't know why they don't just make the lot 50 and be done with it.

It's OK to say "you should know the speed limit" but say I'm not a local (which, yes Pete, I am) and I hadn't passed a 50 sign, how would I know I was breaking the law? The surroundings don't look any different until you get into the main drag where the shops are.

I once got booked in Ballina Street Lismore for doing 67kph in a 60 zone The ticket said that I was booked between Three Chain Road Lismore and a street just near the Wollongbah Tafe College which is a distance of about 7klms which goes through three street and road name changes and four suburbs over that distance.

I thought I will take this to court and fight it and in the end I couldn't afford the time and just paid the fine.

Three weeks later there was a business man in Lismore got booked in exactly the same spot and under the same conditions and he went to court with a smart solicitor and won the case and had it thrown out.

The law sometimes is a complete ass and very inconsistant and most times it is only revenue raising.

Another inconsistancy today I went through a village called Somerton on the Oxley Highway going to Gunnedah to the Agquip Field Days and as you come into the village a sign says all the streets in Somerton have a 50KPH speed limit and as you go up the road another 50 metres there is a 60 k sign. Talk about confusing.

One thing I've noticed country driving in NSW.

Some towns have at the entrance to the town, "All streets in Buggery have 50 kph limits"

Then you usually hit a 60 kph sign

Others have the sign "Some streets in West Buggery have 50 kph limits" .

Then you usually hit a 60 kph sign. :confused:

It's all very odd.

Well done Mr Solicitor

Too often law enforcement forgets there are rules. Do things right and bobs ya uncle....take short cuts, dont do the hard work to make sure everything is correct then pay the price.:rolleyes:

And who supplies the red flag Al? does it need to be calibrated every year? Is it Worksafe approved?

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Originally Posted by craigb

Some towns have at the entrance to the town, "All streets in Buggery have 50 kph limits"

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Always wondered where that place was. Dad was always telling me to go there.:D

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Originally Posted by Iain

And who supplies the red flag Al? does it need to be calibrated every year? Is it Worksafe approved?

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You can get them here.

www.redflagsareus.com.au

Al :p

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Originally Posted by dazzler

Too often law enforcement forgets there are rules. Do things right and bobs ya uncle....take short cuts, dont do the hard work to make sure everything is correct then pay the price.:rolleyes:

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I don't think that's applicable in this case. The matter was thrown out based on the frequency of calibration. Thats hardly the fault of the operator.

Dan

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Originally Posted by DanP

I don't think that's applicable in this case. The matter was thrown out based on the frequency of calibration. Thats hardly the fault of the operator.

Dan

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Who blamed the operator:confused:

The policy section that approved them is at fault. Every time the thing is touched it should be recalibrated. Once a year is ridiculous and open to appeal.

Particularly with radar devices the operator should (required in most states) test the calibaration at the start and end of each shift.

The arguement that can be used is that the radar has sat there for a year, trucks rumbling past, winds, rain etc going in and out of calibration over 365 days.

This is what i am talking about. Policy/legal need to be across this stuff.

Here is a good example of short cuts.

Back in about 1993 the ACT brought in Laser 'guns'. They were not gazetted but relied on a radar qualified officer to use them and they were a back up to his/her estimation. This is fine given that a qualified radar operater was considered an expert in speed estimation.

Due to the amount of fines being generated they let non radar operators use them (general duties police) and it flipped to relying on the instrument not the officers expertise. This went on for some years until they were gazettted. Lucky for ACT the public took them as gospel.

Short cuts.:rolleyes:

sic 'im Dan. You know you want to ;)

Richard

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Originally Posted by dazzler

Every time the thing is touched it should be recalibrated.

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Rubbish. They are calibrated once a year by experts and checked before and after use for accuracy by the operator. I can't see how this is a problem. If it is accurate at the start of the shift and at the end of the shift, there should be no issue.

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Originally Posted by dazzler

Particularly with radar devices the operator should (required in most states) test the calibaration at the start and end of each shift.

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And if that was done in this case, how can a Judge question it. Calibration once a year is more than good enough. I have only seen one radar go out of whack before the end of the year and that was because it got wet.

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Originally Posted by dazzler

The arguement that can be used is that the radar has sat there for a year, trucks rumbling past, winds, rain etc going in and out of calibration over 365 days.

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Which should be picked up by the trained operator who diligently checks it before he starts taking photos.

My point is, Calibrated yearly is more than good enough if the operator checks the unit for accuracy before and after use, as he is required to do by legislation. For a Judge to disregard the legislated requirements and put his own requirements over and above those that have worked for 15 years shows gross ignorance IMO. Maybe it's a plot to get Marcus Einfeld out of his spot of bother...:rolleyes:

Dan

There has been a lot of discussion on this issue, but I thought that what what was brought out in the media and they were talking about were the stationary speed cameras operated by the RTA in NSW which are only checked once a year.

There wasn't an issue with speed cameras operated by the NSW police that were checked for accuracy at the start and finish of each shift.

So I think the whole issue has been blown out of all proportion

The point I am making is that once a year is just asking for trouble. Its a short cut to save $$.

They are talking about fixed speed cameras that rake in 100s of $1000 every year. Now I dont agree every day is anything near reasonable but at least every month and if this had been done then the issue may not have arisen.

Blind freddie could see that twelve months was a loophole that would one day be pursued.

I travel on a section of road with two fixed speed cameras that seem to be getting serviced each week. Simply take one out, put a recalibrated/serviced one each week/fortnight/month.

I thought we were talking about operated speed cameras. Not fixed. If fixed cameras are only looked at once a year, I'm with you.

Dan