Crispin

This might be my undoing.....

I have always subscribed to the theory that Gatsos have to take a picture of your rear end as you pass them - not go into them, well in the last week I have driven towards about 5 Gatsos and they have all gone off taking pictures of the front of my car, the cameras were all on the other side of the road, but my side did have calibration markings....am I destined for the train?....any thoughts welcome...

Thanks

Ian Cook

R U Sure they are Gatso ! not TRUVELO ! as Truvelo DO face you and take a piccy of the front of the car !

Neil Smalley

There are some forward facing Gatso's called Truvelo.
They have a red lens, and typically work by sensors under the road.

If they looked like this, you may be in trouble.

http://www.ukspeedtraps.co.uk/gatso09.htm

JoeyDeacon

Can they still manage to take a photo of the front of your car at night when you have full beams on??

Crispin

Nah - standard White flash, no Piezo strips, No red lens, so fingers crossed.....

(please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob, please god don't take away my scoob......)

dannyn

As a sometime motorcyclist I love cameras that work as you are heading toward them!! I saw an interesting thread on a bike BB about cameras that is relevant.
Recently an individual got a dead cert speeding conviction squashed because he 'couldn't remember' who was driving his car at the time in question and the camera had taken a picture of the back of his car and didn't enable identification of the driver (like the kind that photograph the car as it is heading towards them do). The fact that the gent in question is a high ranking police officer was not seen as relevant by the court; but it does create a precident, p'rhaps?

CELL

The same thing happened to me once.

On my way home as usual driving towards one on the other side of the road, and flash!
I looked in my mirror for a car going the other way, there was one but i am sure it had gone too far past for him to have activated it.
I was sh1tting myself for ages afterwards but nothing landed through the post.

You sure it wasnt cars going the other way?

Jerome

According to the speedtraps site, the forward facing cameras are designed to prevent people avioding the points/fine by getting a friend to take the points for them. Time to invest in a balaclava methinks...

Crispin

Definitely not a car going the other way, it (the last one) was 7:30am on Sat morning going down the A3, and it was empty...

Mog

Locally to me there is a road with a camera on both sides facing the same way, so one is taking pictures of oncoming traffic but it has road markings and a purple lens....Can anyone enlighten me

Mog

sKunk

Cameras here take pictures of speeding traffic in both directions.

robman

Just be careful that if the flash does go off in your face that you're not blinded, causing you to crash and take legal action against the council.

simonzzr

There is a camera close to my friends house that when you drive past it at speed it flashes but we've had a close look at it and it appears that it is a standard gatso and not the devious ones mentioned!.I am usually on my motorbike when it happens but when i am in my car i always put down the sunvisor and cover my face with my hand just to be sure!!arent the law getting sneeky?!!!!

sKunk

heh, I always give them the bird

Neanderthal

iTrader: (6)

Here in Northampton we have speed cameras that they can rotate. It could be facing one one in the morning, then when you're coming home it's facing the other, calibration markers on both sides of the road [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

Matt

Hunk

Well, over here Gatso's work both ways. There even was a guy who went to court because he thought of it as being 'discriminating for car-drivers' as motorcycles obvious don't have a reg.plate on the front. He lost.

mutant_matt

You know it's terrible when you rip past a forward facing Gatso on a dual carrigeway that has a 30 limit (no houses, people or other vehicles in sight ) on a motorcycle at **mph with an Iridium visor - particularly if you are waving at the camera at the time with one finger

Not that I've ever done anything like that you understand but I heard that some bikers do....

Matt

Jim laden

If it is a Gatso then you are ok. You know its a gatso cos it flashed. It wont take you picture head on cos of the flash, if you say the flash blinded you for a second and you crashed your car what would the police do then?!

I also think it is rather unfair with the new types of camera's as they take you picture head on. This means bikes wont get cought. So it looks like im getting a bike then

Gordo

Don't worry about it - there's one near where I used to live that randomly took pictures of the front of my car, similarly with markings on both sides of the road. I never received any notifications.

A local plod told me in the pub one night:

- the markings are on both sides of the road to get people who cross over to avoid the markings when passing the camera
- they cannot prosecute you with a camera that flashes in your face (dangerous)
- for some reason the cameras are a little more sensitive to cars heading towards them and will sometimes trigger even when you're doing the speed limit (this was borne out a couple of times when I triggered it)

anyone able to confirm (any of) the above?

Gordo

Neil F

Truvelos dont flash even in the dark (they take an infra red picture or something).
This is because to photograph the targeted car head on, the flash would by directed in the driver's eyes.
If you see a gatso flashing head on then it is possibly being triggered by you (although it should be set for travel direction) or just going ga-ga (I stood watching one flashing merrily away to itself as I filled up in the petrol station the other day; not a car within 500 yards of it).
If the camera is on the other side of the road (as opposed to on a centre reservation) then it is definitely photographing the opposite lane and you have nothing to worry about.

Neil.

DazW

iTrader: (1)

Oh the fun that can be had with 1. A Gatso that’s a little too sensitive to oncoming vehicles 2. A bit of anticipation, and finally 3. An oncoming Tractor/Cyclist or a cap wearing grave dodger in a Volvo!

steve McCulloch

Get the Morpheus - gives you a bit of a head start on them

I will also not be replacing the front number plate on the car (cos I have a front mounted intercooler) until I'm told to!

I also have the luxury of owning laser jammers - a set at the front and I'm about to invest in a set for the back of the car as well!!

Lets see em get me the b*stards

Just gotta be careful of the patrol cars!