Yesterday’s news that two British motorists were taking a test case to the European Court of Human Rights in which they are challenging the fact that motorists should not have the incriminate themselves, and that they have the right to silence, raised the issue of speed cameras in the UK once again.

My feelings on the issue are quite simple. Yes we need to catch speeding motorists as indeed speed does play a big factor in motoring accidents, but we also need to combat the rapidly falling standards of driving on the roads today we equally if not more so contribute to accidents.

Police forces over the past few years have reduced the number of traffic enforcement cars and rapidly increased the number of speed camera devices on the UK road network. A recent Auto Express survey discovered the true facts about how the UK Police forces are policing roads in their area. The survey reveals the number of traffic enforcement cars and the number of speed cameras used for each of the UK Police forces. The figures show the ratio of traffic enforcement cars to speed cameras for the area of jurisdiction, with speed cameras have much greater numbers than traffic enforcement cars.

While catching speeders is a priority, so should be tackling the other traffic laws which are broken everyday. In my daily commute to work along the M62 corridor, I see all manner of traffic law violations and discourteous driving. This puts all motorists in danger as well as pedestrians and other road users. There are no static speed cameras on my route, and I very rarely see a traffic enforcement car either. As a result of this, it seems that other motorists feel they can do as they please in order to arrive at their destination just a few minutes earlier than if they had obeyed traffic law.

I feel strongly that speed cameras are a ‘one trick pony’ and that Britain’s roads should not be enforced primarily by these devices. I am not saying that they do not have their place, I am saying that they should be used as an aid by Police forces and not as a replacement for traffic enforcement cars. I’m sorry to say that with the current Government attitude, I don’t see anything changing in the short term.