dholmes

Several of us at work have recently noticed 3 cameras ( one per lane) on tripods sitting on a bridge facing west bound traffic around the Bar Hill area of the A14 Cambs.

These are NOT traffic master cameras.

A colleague decided to investigate further and drove over the bridge with the said cameras and was horrified to discover that cables ran from the cameras to a marked police parked off to the side out of site of the main road.

He then later discovered a marked police car and bike parked out of sight one junction west of the cameras.

I can only assume that the cameras are being used to take time / distance readings to calculate speed and then the van radios the waiting Police vehicles.

Anybody else notice them or heard of such a setup?

Dave T-S

There's also about six Truvelo/Gatso's on either carriageway north/southbound of the old A604 (as was) at Bar Hill northwards.....

dholmes

I know, I drive by them each day, terrified that I might temporarily allow my speed increase if my mind drifts elseqhere.

Better than when I worked in Northants. At least I know where the Gatsos are on any given day, not like their mobile camera vans.

DJFish

Daft question but I'll ask it anyway;

I did a small job in London a few years back which required that I close off part of the pavement with bollards and the like.
To do this I had to contact the relevant borough council and go through a fairly lengthy process because as I was told at the time, obstruction of the public highway is not something that you can just do as and when you want to due to the high priority given to disabled access etc.., you have to have specific permission for each worksite as well as risk assesments etc..

What would happen if you asked the policemen to remove the cameras as they were impeding your progress along the footpath?(obviously they'd tell you to sling your hook but would it be legal?),
who would be liable if a cyclist knocked the camera off it's perch and into the carraigeway below and, heaven forbid, caused an accident?
And what would happen if someone were injured by a car due to having to walk in the road due to the siting of the revenue earners(OOPS! I mean speed enforcement cameras)?

I've a feeling that the boys in blue are able to park pretty much where they want but is obstructing the queens highway like this entirely legal?

Regards
Dave

Mad Max

This system has been used in most of europe for quite a while... french highway police do it all the time, then radio in for the cop on the next payup toll to stop you, therefore I always slow down to parked cars as well as "suspicious" objects on the side of the road...

Keep your atention up and you should be ok (been overspeeding for 12 years, and I am psycologically and emotionally ready for my first speeding ticket)

Cheers

Max

mook

Dave > I would imagine you've got a pretty valid point about obstructing the pavement, etc. We need to search them out then have someone walk past and 'accidentally' trip over a tripod leg and threaten to sue the filth!

ZAZ

These are obviously not designed to slow drivers down and make the road safer otherwise the police vehicles would be in sight at both locations and there would be signs.

These sort of things are out of order and show what the police are really interested in, i.e. money!

boomer

I drove down the A14 from the M6 to Cambridge today for the first time in a couple of years and i was _disgusted_ by the amount of anti-car apparatus along the way

<UL TYPE=SQUARE>
<LI>Truvelos placed at intersections with slip-roads, but nothing around the "warning - pedestrians crossing in 40 yards" areas.

<LI>Every Gatso that i passed was live (emitted radar).

<LI>A bloody <B>census</B> being carried out, causing the traffic to bunch to a crawl. Interestingly, there was a traffic flash onthe radio about the congestion caused by the Census. However a little later they said that the traffic was flowing again, but oops, they weren't allowed to tell folks about the census just in case they took a different route
</UL>

I didn't see the tripod cameras (what time was this?), but at 08:00 between Huntingdon and Cambridge you can't speed (or _even_ reach 50mph) anyway. Similarly at 18:30 on the way home, nose to tail traffic (until we passed the census point again )

I must admit, if there are <I>really</I> so many accident blackspots on such a relatively <B>new</B> road, then we should not only sue, but imprison the people who designed and build such a supposed death-trap!!

mb

dholmes

boomer,

They were there all day.

Thanks for the info about the gatso(s). I saw the west bound one flash the other night so suspected they might be live.

Darren

Floyd

iTrader: (9)

Just seen the blue (traffic master) cameras on each lane of the M1 J9 North, I think! Why do they need one on each lane? Aren't the old detectors good enough? Scared the B'Jesus outta me.

F

boomer

Darren,

what also worried me is that colleagues of mine who came up the M11 from the South reported Gatsos ON THE MOTORWAY. Sheesh, accident blackspot my **** (well not due to speed at least)!!!

mb

ca

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by boomer:
<B>I must admit, if there are <I>really</I> so many accident blackspots on such a relatively new</B> road, then we should not only sue, but imprison the people who designed and build such a supposed death-trap!!

mb<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

hi boomer,

How is it that speed cameras appear on brand new roads when they are supposedly only used at accident blackspots?

How can a brand new road have a history of accidents and, thus, be an accident blackspot?

Answer: Frankly, it's bollox. Revenue, revenue and revenue. Pure and Simple.

C

InvisibleMan

yep Gatsos on M11 (Junc. near harlow?) where speed drops to 50. Apparently this is the most 'flashed' gatso in the country.

steve McCulloch

Install a laser Jammer immediately - I personnaly recommend the Snooper SLD and will also be getting one fitted to my company car in due course

Dont know what the solution will really be against the new 'specs' system

Neil Smalley

Steve

Geodesy will detect all fixed cameras(including the new cats eye ones(<B>IF</B> they ever work)

Phil

Steve

"install a laser Jammer immediatley"

Why they don't work with camera's

But they ARE excellent against hand held lasers (my company WRX has both a detector and Diffuser(jammer))

Phil

jon hill

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by InvisibleMan:
<B>yep Gatsos on M11 (Junc. near harlow?) where speed drops to 50. Apparently this is the most 'flashed' gatso in the country. [/quote]

Not just at the 50 limit, but there are gatsos on the M11 about 20 miles out of London (just south of the stanstead turn off). Middle of the 70 mph motorway...

Scooby-dude

A mate of mine was recently stopped on the M11 nr J8. The cop told him, quite smuggly that his 'remote sensor clocked him at 130 a kilometre away.'

So by the time you see the car, it's too late. Sneaky.

steve McCulloch

Even more reason to install a jammer me thinks

I think a Geodesy may be a good point here for the specs system! - up and runnign for a while now in Gloucester