Motorists still driven round the bend by speed cameras, survey finds

Our hate affair with the 6,000 speed cameras across the UK is as strong as ever, according to new research, especially among high-mileage drivers.

A recent survey by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) found that 60 per cent of high-mileage drivers thought there no real other reasons to have them other than as a ‘money-making tool’ unless located at an accident blackspot.

28 per cent of the same category, meanwhile, generally had a negative view of speed cameras – 10 per cent higher than medium and low-mileage motorists.

Half expressed disdain for money made from speed awareness courses being used to operate speed cameras, while 27 per cent believe speed cameras have had no impact on reducing road casualties in the UK, compared with 20 per cent of medium-mileage and 17 per cent of low-mileage drivers.

On the subject of whether it is acceptable for authorities to use roadside cameras to identify vehicles, 28 per cent of those high-mileage drivers were once again unimpressed, stating the practice is ‘unacceptable’.

The survey, titled Speed Cameras – The Views of High Mileage Drivers, looked at 1,001 motorists and was commissioned by the road safety charity’s commercial division, IAM Drive & Survive. It classifies high-mileage as more than 13,000 miles a year and low mileage as below 3,000 miles.

IAM CEO Sarah Sillars said: “It is clear that there is a very big task when it comes to making high-mileage driver see the worth of measures to reduce overspeeding. While we know that speeding is not the only cause of accidents and injuries, it is one of the major ones.
 
“Employers need to work with their employees to ensure that they appreciate the part they play in making our roads safer.
 
“The figures we have found show the great extent to which high-mileage and company drivers are involved in incidents. Therefore this educational task needs to happen sooner rather than later.”

Government figures show there were 3,493 deaths killed in accidents involving a driver or rider on the way to work between 2008 and 2013, 515 of which occurred in 2013.

Last year we reported on Britain’s most lucrative speed camera, which generated £808,410 in revenue in six months.