Motorway speed cameras to be rolled out to stop those driving faster than 70mph

[Philipnet]

Motoring groups condemn planned introduction of motorway speed cameras, claiming scheme is about raising revenue rather than road safety.

Speed cameras designed to catch motorists driving in excess of 70mph are to be installed along hundreds of miles of motorway for the first time.

New so-called ‘stealth cameras’, which will be grey rather than bright yellow, are to be deployed on busy stretches of some of the most important motorways including the M1, M6 and M25.

Previously, motorway speed cameras have mainly been situated on stretches undergoing roadworks, in order to enforce variable speed limits.
But now for the first time the Highways Agency is looking at the widespread introduction of cameras to target drivers exceeding the maximum allowed speed of 70mph.

The cameras will be deployed on sections of so-called smart motorway, where the flow of traffic is carefully controlled using a variety of techniques.

According to the Highways Agency, smart-motorways will prevent jams and allow the better flow of traffic by carefully controlling speed limits and opening hard shoulders to traffic where necessary.
But critics claim the introduction of cameras aimed at enforcing the 70mph limit, is not about road safety but about generating income through fines.


Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/...han-70mph.html

[Rob McCow]

Speed kills!

And so does not wearing a safety belt, or choking on a boiled sweet while towing a caravan trailer. Or failing to indicate. Or having someone shunt your car while you're picking your nose, that can kill too. Nasty. And lorries! Bloody hell! Lorries.

I don't think that 70mph speed cameras will make much of a difference to road safety personally. Most accidents occur at junctions.

[Philipnet]

I don't think that 70mph speed cameras will make much of a difference to road safety personally. Most accidents occur at junctions.

Exactly.
So this is just aimed at raising money from people who speed.

Although, turning the M4 into a "Smart Motorway" may make my commute slightly​ easier

[Stuart Wallis]

Blowing the M4 up would make a lot of journeys easier! Or at least the M25 turnoff.

Of course, the answer would be to get the car manufacturers to not make cars go faster than 70 unless the emergency services are going to use them. That said, I heard someone from an overseas manufacturer say that cars on the continent aren't facing the same stringent speed limits that we do, and so it's cheaper to make them top a hundred and sell them to all markets rather than just to ours, except our factories are owned by the foreign companies anyway - so I'll just add before i get mistaken for a Daily Mail reader that their agument about speeding doesn't make much sense given they could easily make very British cars for a very British market.

I suspect really that the only way to get the Clarksons, Hamsters and Mays of this world to stop speeding is to replace speed traps with guided ICBM launchers...

[Philipnet]

Blowing the M4 up would make a lot of journeys easier!

Oh no.
I wouldn't wish the A4 on anyone!

Given the overseas car manufactures could easily make very British cars for a very British market.

They do.
We're right hand drive, and Europe (and the most of the rest of the world) are left hand.

[Dirk Gently]

I don't see this as a money making scheme. The Law says don't do more than 70 mph, if you do you have to face the consequences of a speeding fine. You don't want to pay a fine? Then don't break the law!