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REVENUE RAISERS OR LIFESAVERS – IT’S TIME TO MAKE UP YOUR OWN MIND…
Monday, 31 July 2006
"Speed cameras are a stealth tax on drivers…"
"They criminalise drivers and don’t catch the real criminals or dangerous drivers…"
"Cameras are hidden to catch unwary drivers…"
These are the most popular and oft-repeated of the myths and misconceptions that have grown up around speed cameras… or to give them their proper name, speed control safety cameras.
There are probably no more than half a dozen hard-core myths about cameras. But these are constantly repeated and recycled by those who are implacably opposed to them, which is why these myths have stuck around, says Philip J Gwynne, Head of Public at West Yorkshire Casualty Reduction Partnership, the organisation responsible for installing and maintaining speed control safety cameras, deploying mobile patrols, and traffic light safety cameras in our part of the world.
There are also some national newspapers, well known for their self-confessed anti-camera stance, that continue to give space to the anti-camera lobby and their propaganda without getting a balanced view from camera organisations.
The result is that the myths live on. "Everyone is entitled to their opinion about cameras… for, against or undecided, it’s up to them… but those opinions should be based on facts, not what’s they’ve read in the paper, or heard from some bloke down the pub," says Philip Gwynne.
Some of the misconceptions about cameras and associated speed enforcement equipment come from the first experiments with cameras in the early and mid-90s. Philip Gwynne acknowledges that where and how cameras were used probably wasn’t fully explained. The yellow roadside boxes and mobile patrols just seemed to appear on our streets.
There was a public backlash about "big brother" surveillance and motorists’ organisations joined in. These early concerns were not fully addressed at the time and so the suspicions about cameras stuck…and are still being aired today, nearly 15 years after the first cameras were installed.
During those 15 years, there’s been little or no public comment from the politicians who were responsible for introducing cameras in the first place, so the detractors have had free rein. No wonder the myths and fables persist! And this despite the fact that the rules about where cameras can and cannot be installed have been demonstrated to be rigorously enforced. Every camera must be proven to be a "last resort" measure for a verified fatal crash and casualty zone.
As Head of Public Affairs, Philip Gwynne is responsible for ensuring that West Yorkshire Casualty Reduction Partnership operates as openly, honestly and transparently as possible. His work to keep people informed about cameras has been recognised with local, regional and international awards. Most recently his campaigns have won The UK Radio Campaign Of The Year and the Prince Michael International Road Safety Award.
One exercise in open-ness has been to remodel, enlarge and improve the partnership’s website www.safetycameraswestyorkshire.co.uk. Re-launched on August 1, the site aims to be THE authoritative source of information about speed control safety cameras and red light safety cameras in West Yorkshire.
As well as information about how cameras operate and the rules governing where they can be placed, the site includes:
- Links to maps to show the locations of stretches of roads covered by safety cameras
- Statistical data about casualty history of camera locations
- Opportunity to report problem stretches of road for investigation
- Latest news about cameras and casualty reduction in West Yorkshire
- Freedom of Information Act requests and responses
- Full listing of every camera location in West Yorkshire
- Advance notice of where the mobile camera patrols will be operating
- Your questions answered… and your comments and letters published
- Interactive on-line surveys and public opinion polls
- Links to other useful sites
- Order forms for FREE safer driving guides
- Subscribe to the FREE safety cameras newsletter, SCaN
- Take advantage of campaign promotions
It is hoped that anyone with a query about cameras in West Yorkshire, or speed enforcement or related issues, will visit www.safetycameraswestyorkshire.co.uk and check out the information for themselves, or ask their questions via the comments/contact us page.
"If you want facts about your health, you go to a doctor; you don’t take the word of your next door neighbour or some bloke down the pub,"says Philip Gwynne. "So why believe someone who doesn’t know what they’re talking about to give you information on cameras? The website gives the facts, not the fiction."
· In addition to the website, the partnership proactively publishes lots of information about who they are and what they do via—
- local newspapers, radio stations and TV
- the newsletter ScaN
- specialist publications and supplements
- information campaigns
- public opinion polls, surveys and market research
- advertising
- driver education initiatives
- after-dinner talks and presentations to a wide cross- section of audiences
- special events, exhibitions and similar