In winter sometimes fallen leaves can obscure yellow lines, resulting in
drivers receiving parking fines for stopping on roads where they
thought that it was ok to park.
If leaves are obscuring lines on an un-spwept roads it is worth being
aware that this is grounds for appealing a parking ticket, but only if
certain conditions are met.
This is because it is the responsibility of local councils to keep roads
clean with parking restrictions clearly visible. If the lines were covered by leaves and there was
no relevant signage close to your vehicle then you have a good chance of
having the ticket overturned.
In order to appeal you need to do the following upon finding the parking fine.
look for signs that state the restrictions.
(If there’s one right next to your car then your appeal is likely to
fail).
Measure its
distance from your car to the nearest signage. (One pace = around a metre)
Take a
picture of your car in relation to the sign
Take a photograph of the road showing that the lines are obscured by leaves or flooding.
Most phones will embed Exif data on the image, this information can be used to prove the location and time that the
photo was taken. This could be vital in any appeal.
The Source of this information is aph.com, there are also many other helpful tips for winter in their article
Road safety campaigners want
anti-speeding technology (Intelligent Speed Adaptation - ISA) fitted as standard to all newly manufactured cars after a rise in the number
of crashes caused by breaking the speed limit.
The system shows the speed limit of the road a person is driving on and can control the speed of the vehicle.
Intelligent Speed Adaptationtechnology allows drivers to select an option where acceleration is
stopped automatically at the speed limit specific to any road (this can also be disabled via button). When this mode is turned off the speed limit is still displayedbut the speed not overridden.
Its developers say ISA is intended as a road safety device, but it could have additional benefits.
These
include reducing congestion as a result of collisions, and cutting
vehicle emissions as drivers adopt a smoother driving style
Campaigners are making the call as part of Road Safety Week after Scottish government figures earlier this
year showed a 14% rise in road deaths in Scotland during 2016
compared with 2015.
Jason Wakeford, director of campaigns for Brake, said:
"Speeding remains a major problem, causing untold suffering to families
up and down the country."
Since the paper tax disc was abolished the number of unlicensed vehicles on the road has tripled.
The
data, published every two years, shows that the government potentially
lost out on £107m from 755,000 unlicensed vehicles last year.
The RAC said the decision to get rid of the paper tax disc three years ago has proved "costly" when it should have saved the Treasury £10m a year.
"It appears that having a visual reminder was an effective
way to prompt drivers into renewing their car tax - arguably more
drivers are now prepared to try their luck and see if they can get away
with not paying any vehicle tax at all, or are simply forgetting to tax
their vehicle when they are due to."
When the abolition of the paper tax disc was announced by
then-Chancellor, George Osborne, the Treasury said it showed government
was moving "into the modern age".
The
RAC said a third of untaxed vehicles had changed hands since September
2016, indicating that many drivers were not aware that tax does not
carry over when ownership changes.
The seller receives a refund of any full months of remaining tax while the new owner must tax the vehicle immediately.
the Association of Optometrists has said that Drivers should have compulsory eye tests every 10 years.
One
in three optometrists say they have seen patients in the last month who
continue to drive with vision below the legal standard.
Motorists must read a number plate from 20m (65ft) in the practical driving test, but there is no follow-up check.
It is currently down to drivers to report changes to eyesight to the DVLA. However this is not always as simple as it sounds and this is down to the fact that sight changes can be gradual, often people won't realise that their vision has deteriorated over time.
Data
from the Department for Transport shows seven people were killed and 63
were seriously injured in accidents on Britain's roads last year when
"uncorrected, defective eyesight" was a contributory factor.
Currently when drivers pass the age of 70, the emphasis changes a little. Drivers must actively make a declaration every three years that they are fit to drive. As part of that they must confirm that they meet the minimum eyesight requirement.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has confirmed that the driving test in England, Scotland and Wales will change from Monday 4 December 2017.
The changes are designed to make sure new drivers have the skills they’ll need to help them through a lifetime of safe driving.
The changes will only apply to car driving tests to begin with.
The 4 driving test changes
1. Independent driving part of the test will increase to 20 minutes
The independent driving part of the test currently lasts around 10 minutes. During this part of the test, you have to drive without turn-by-turn directions from the driving examiner.
This part of the test will be made longer, so it’ll last around 20 minutes - roughly half of the test.
2. Following directions from a sat nav
During the independent driving part of the test, most candidates will be asked to follow directions from a sat nav.
The examiner will provide the sat nav and set it up. You won’t need to set the route - the examiner will do this for you. So, it doesn’t matter what make or model of sat nav you practise with.
You can’t follow directions from your own sat nav during the test - you have to use the one supplied by the examiner.
You’ll be able to ask the examiner for confirmation of where you’re going if you’re not sure. It won’t matter if you go the wrong way unless you make a fault while doing it.
One in 5 driving tests won’t use a sat nav. You’ll need to follow traffic signs instead.
3. Reversing manoeuvres will be changed
The ‘reverse around a corner’ and ‘turn-in-the-road’ manoeuvres will no longer be tested, but you should still be taught them by your instructor.
You’ll be asked to do one of 3 possible reversing manoeuvres:
parallel park at the side of the road
park in a bay - either driving in and reversing out, or reversing in and driving out (the examiner will tell you which you have to do)
pull up on the right-hand side of the road, reverse for 2 car lengths and rejoin the traffic
4. Answering a vehicle safety question while you’re driving
The examiner will ask you 2 vehicle safety questions during your driving test - these are known as the ‘show me, tell me’ questions.
You’ll be asked the:
‘tell me’ question (where you explain how you’d carry out a safety task) at the start of your test, before you start driving
‘show me’ question (where you show how you’d carry out a safety task) while you’re driving - for example, showing how to wash the windscreen using the car controls and wipers
How the new test will work
This video shows how the test will work from 4 December 2017.
Who it affects
All car driving tests taken from 4 December 2017 will follow the new format. This includes if:
you fail a test before then, and retake your test from 4 December 2017
your test is cancelled or moved for any reason, and your new test date is from 4 December 2017
Your driving instructor should have been teaching you everything you
need to know to drive safely, so you shouldn’t need to worry about
learning anything new.
The pass mark is staying the same. So, you’ll pass your test if you make no more than 15 driving faults and
no serious or dangerous faults.
The examiner will still mark the test in the same way, and the same things will still count as faults.
The overall time of the driving test won’t change. It will still take around 40 minutes.
Road collisions are the biggest killer of young people. They account
for over a quarter of all deaths of those aged between 15 and 19.
DVSA wants to make sure that training and the driving test reduce the number of young people being killed in collisions.
These changes are being made because:
most fatal collisions happen on high-speed roads (not including
motorways) - changing the format of the test will allow more of these
types of roads to be included in driving test routes
52% of car drivers now have a sat nav - DVSA wants new drivers to be trained to use them safely
research has shown that new drivers find independent driving
training valuable - they can relate it to driving once they’ve passed
their test
Changes are supported by the public
The changes follow a:
public consultation that over 3,900 people took part in
trial of the changes involving over 4,300 learner drivers and over 860 driving instructors
88.2% agreed with increasing the length of the independent driving part of the test
70.8% agreed with asking candidates to follow directions from a sat nav
78.6% agreed with the plans to change how the reversing manoeuvres are tested
78.4% agreed with asking the ‘show me’ question while the candidate is driving
Helping you through a lifetime of safe driving
Transport Minister, Andrew Jones, said:
Our roads are among the safest in the world. However, road collisions are the biggest killer of young people.
These changes will help us to reduce the number
of people killed or seriously injured on our roads and equip new drivers
with the skill they need to use our roads safely.
DVSA Chief Executive, Gareth Llewellyn, said:
DVSA’s priority is to help you through a lifetime of safe driving.
Making sure the driving test better assesses a driver’s ability to
drive safely and independently is part of our strategy to help you stay
safe on Britain’s roads.
It’s vital that the driving test keeps up to
date with new vehicle technology and the areas where new drivers face
the greatest risk once they’ve passed their test.
More information
More information for driving instructors is being published on DVSA’s Despatch blog.
According to new data only around half of fixed speed cameras on British roads are switched on.
The figures that were released by 36 police forces in the UK show that of a total 2,838 cameras, just 1,486 - or 52% - are active. (Fixed cameras only not mobile devices)
according to information obtained by the Press Association (PA), some police forces have completely turned off all their cameras. Northamptonshire police deactivated all of theirs in 2011 but left the machines in place as a deterant. (Cleveland, Durham and North Yorkshire said theirs are all also turned off)
A spokeswoman for the National Police Chiefs' Council said the decision to use cameras was "an operational matter", adding that "all forces have individual responsibility for their use of speed cameras".
Fixed speed cameras in Cleveland, Durham, North Yorkshire and Northamptonshire are all inactive
Staffordshire Police has 272 fixed cameras across the region, of which 14 are active
In Scotland, less than 29% of fixed cameras are switched on
Forces where less than 25% of fixed cameras are active: West Yorkshire, Kent, South Yorkshire, Greater Manchester and Cheshire
Derbyshire force operates 112 cameras, of which 10 are switched on
Gwent police force has 17 fixed speed cameras of which 8 are active while South Wales has 88, 59% of which are switched on
Police forces with all fixed speed cameras switched on include: the City of London, the Metropolitan Police/Transport for London, Lancashire, Nottinghamshire, Suffolk and Northern Ireland
Edmund King, president of the AA, said: "Many of the empty yellow cases are due to cuts in road safety grants and the fact that digital cameras, although more effective, are very expensive."
He added: "It has long been the case that cameras were moved between sites, depending on need. When it comes to the chances of being caught on camera, it is a postcode lottery. All cameras in City of London and Suffolk are working whereas only 5% are active in Staffordshire."
"However, drivers should remember that lack of a yellow fixed camera doesn't mean they are immune from mobile hidden cameras. Best advice is stick to the limits rather than gambling on the yellow boxes."
The Escort Passport Qi45 is designed by Escort to be the quickest and
easiest to install integrated radar detector system made for an under
the bonnet hidden solution. The system has three components: The
antenna/receiver, the interface, and the display/controller. Just
connect the interface to a switched power supply and connect the antenna
and display using standard RJ11 cables.
In addition to being easy to install, the Qi45 offers excellent performance. The Qi45 detects all bands of radar and Laser. The Passport Qi45 has voice alerts, a Signal Strength Meter, AutoMute, and three sensitivity levels.
Because
the display can be mounted almost anywhere, it is easily concealed. If
you have been looking for an integrated radar detector to replace your
traditional windshield mount one, then the Qi45 may be exactly what you
have been looking for.
The Government has announced that as from next year learners will be able to have motorway lessons in dual control cars with approved driving instructors. (England, Wales and Scotland)
Currently you have to have passed your driving test to be allowed to drive on motorways. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said the lessons would make UK roads safer.
He
said: "Allowing learners to drive on motorways in a supportive
environment will help them develop a practical understanding of how to
use motorways safely before driving independently."
Mr
Grayling said young drivers were more likely to be killed or seriously
injured on Britain's roads - and a lack of experience was an "important
factor".
"The UK has some of safest roads in the world and we want to make them even safer," he said.
Motorway rules
When joining the motorway give
priority to traffic already on the road. Match your speed to fit safely
into the traffic flow and remain in the left-hand lane long enough to
adjust to the speed of traffic before considering overtaking
When you can see well ahead and the road conditions are good, drive at a steady cruising speed within the speed limit
Always drive in the left-hand lane
when the road ahead is clear. If you are overtaking slower-moving
vehicles, return to the left-hand lane as soon as you are safely past
Only overtake on the right-hand side,
when it safe and legal to do so. In congested conditions, however, you
may keep up with the traffic in your lane even if this means passing
traffic in the lane to your right. Do not weave in and out of lanes to
overtake
Do not stop on the hard shoulder except in an emergency
Do not reverse, cross the central
reservation, or drive against the traffic flow. If you have missed your
exit, carry on to the next one
More than a million drivers each year now opt to attend speeding awareness courses instead of receiving points and a fine
Currently police forces are not supposed to generate and income from the courses but do receive a "flat fee" to cover their costs, because of a £10 per person price rise from last month, they are estimated to receive an extra £12 million a year from speed awareness courses going forwards
With thousands more speed cameras being placed around the country, Police forces have now been accused of deliberately targeting motorists to raise revenue
Hugh Bladon of the Alliance of British Drivers claimed it was clear by the huge numbers taking part, that police forces were generating significant amounts of revenue from the schemes.
He said: "The incentive is clearly there for the police to get people onto these courses because they benefit financially. It does not accord with what our definition of justice is in the UK".
Claire Armstrong of the group Safe Speed, also said it was nonsense to suggest speed awareness courses were about anything but making money.
She said: "These course are using the police as a sales mechanism for the speed camera industry. It is so far from being about road safety that they should be embarrassed.
"Motorists are being bribed into doing these courses that are not improving road safety. It is a huge scam."
Two private companies run the majority of courses, but five police forces; Lancashire, Merseyside, Humberside, Cheshire and Northamptonshire run their own.
Any profits they make, must be put back into road safety, but with forces facing unprecedented financial pressure, any extra revenue will be welcomed by Chief Constables.
Speed limits for motorway roadworks where the limit is currently 50mph could be raised in a bid to ease congestion in England.
Highways England recently carried out trials in which it was discovered that drivers' heart rates were
lower when they drove at 55mph or 60mph rather than the usual 50mph through
roadworks. The study further suggested that motorists felt more relaxed travelling at higher speeds, partly because
they had a greater ability to accelerate past heavy goods vehicles.
It is reported that the new limits could
come into effect in some areas this year. Unite a trade union, which represents road workers throughout the UK,
said the proposed speed increases ignored the safety of those
maintaining motorways, who "work in already very dangerous conditions".
A spokesman said: "Sadly, in recent years there have been several
deaths of motorway workers and these changes will make their work even
more dangerous.
"Already motorists frequently drive into
coned-off areas. At increased speeds, it will make such potentially
lethal accidents even more common."
Edmund
King, president of the AA, said
increasing the speed limit could help reduce congestion, he said it had
to be targeted at the longest stretches of road works where there were
no workers.
He said: "When work is going on and it's in close
proximity to the carriageways we should stick at lower speeds and
sometimes it needs to be lower than 50mph, depending on the layout."
Jim O'Sullivan, chief executive of Highways England, told The Times that the 60mph limit was "something that we want to introduce to as many roadworks as possible".
But
Mr O'Sullivan said that lower speeds were likely to be maintained in
areas with narrow lanes, contraflows or where workers are close to the
road, due to safety reasons.
Dangerous drivers who cause death while using their mobile phones or
speeding will now face life in prison.
Drivers who kill while under the influence of drink or drugs will
also face a life sentence. And there will be a new offence of causing
serious injury through careless driving, as part of renewed efforts to
improve road safety.
The new measures mean such drivers could face the same length of
sentence as those convicted of manslaughter, with maximum penalties
raised from 14 years to life.
The RAC has warned that as a result of the disruption
caused by Hurricane Harvey in the US, Over the next few days we may see the price of unleaded petrol rise by up to 4p per litre.
Hurricane Harvey has left a 1/4 of America's oil refining capacity offline. This has meant that the US demand for petrol imports has jumped, which has in turn driven up prices.
RAC spokesman Pete Williams said this was now affecting UK forecourts.
"The average price of a litre of unleaded petrol on Thursday 31 August was 117.29p and diesel was 118.14p," he said.
"But we could see unleaded rise in the coming days to around 121p a litre, with diesel likely to stay stable around 118.5p."
He
added: "This will be the first time unleaded has been higher than
diesel since June 2016 and we expect this to be the case for some time
to come - or at least until the US oil industry is able to get
refineries back into operation."
We came across a news story in the Guardian where journalist Miles Brignall, had called Admiral whilst looking for car insurance.
One of the questions was asking if he had been on any speed awareness courses. He replied “yes” and the quote
increased by £50.
This seems ridiculous when the whole point of the courses is that they are an
alternative to prosecution meaning that no official record is kept. Admiral defends its action saying that its data shows that drivers who attend a speed awareness
course are more likely to have an accident in the following 12 months
than those who committed no offence. “A speed awareness course will
impact the premium, but shouldn’t impact it as much as a speeding
endorsement".
Miles said that his course provider,
DriveTech, says it does not share details as it is information not in
the public domain.
It would appear from the information in the Guardian that as far as they know, at the moment at least! Admiral is the only insurer that asks this, Other big firms are still only asking about formal convictions.
Common sense therefore having come across this information would be to avoid admiral when its car insurance renewal time if you have attended a speed awareness course within the last 12 months.
Driverless vehicles may seem a long way off at the minute, but over the coming years they are going to become a lot more commonplace with people using them on a daily basis. Will it mean the end of the driving licence and changes to the rules of the road?
All around the world you can already see projects that are developing the technology that will eventually be used to bring driverless cars to our roads. For example in south-east London a white droid delivers takeaway food at a speed of just 4mph. In Paris and Helsinki robot busses are already in use.
Here in the UK current plans are to test driverless cars on roads and motorways starting in 2019.
So far, there is no international safety standard for driverless vehicles - and each country will be responsible for writing its own rules. People are questioning whether rules for driverless vehicles should be national.
A hot issue is what ethics driverless vehicles should adopt. For example, in the case of an unavoidable accident, should a fully autonomous vehicle be programmed to career off the road, risking the lives of the people inside the vehicle, or continue into a pedestrians crossing the road?
Because human drivers make split second, instinctual decisions, human behavior cant be referenced to come up with the right answer.
Technology to handle these situations may be quite some time away meaning that for now humans will still continue to be used as back-up drivers within the vehicles.
Until cars are fully automated and don't need human input, manufacturers won't be able to dispense with steering and braking controls, meaning that YES people will still need driving licences and they'll have to ready to take control at short notice - so challenges like distraction and drunkenness will remain.
For more in depth information please read this piece by the BBC Which goes in to much more detail.
Britain is to ban all new petrol and diesel cars / vans from 2040
due to fears that rising levels of nitrogen oxide pose a major risk to
public health and indeed could be responsible for 40,000 premature deaths a year.
The commitment, which follows a similar pledge in France,
is part of the government’s clean air plan, which has
been at the heart of a lengthy high court legal battle.
The government said the move which will include hybrid
vehicles, was needed because of the unnecessary and avoidable impact
that poor air quality was having on people’s health. Ministers believe
it poses the largest environmental risk to public health in the UK,
costing up to £2.7bn in lost productivity in one recent year.
a government spokesman also said. “we are providing councils with new funding to accelerate
development of local plans, as part of an ambitious £3bn programme to
clean up dirty air around our roads.”
A briefing on parts of the plan, seen by the Guardian, repeats the
heavy focus on the steps that can be taken to help councils improve air
quality in specific areas where emissions have breached EU thresholds.
Measures to be urgently brought in by local authorities that have
repeatedly breached EU rules include:
Retrofitting buses and other public
transport
Changing road layouts
Altering features such as
roundabouts and speed humps.
Prof David Bailey, an automotive industry expert at Aston University,
said: “The timescale involved here is sufficiently long-term to be
taken seriously. If enacted it would send a very clear signal to
manufacturers and consumers of the direction of travel and may
accelerate a transition to electric cars.”
Britain’s air quality package also includes £1bn in ultra-low
emissions vehicles including investing nearly £100m in the UK’s charging
infrastructure and funding the ”plug-in car” and “plug-in grant”
schemes.
Billy James Rich was caught drink driving whilst speeding at nearly 150mph on the M4.
Mr Rich, from Highworth, was behind the wheel of a black BMW
in the early hours of Wednesday when he overtook an unmarked police car
at speed on the A350.
After heading on to the motorway, he was clocked doing 146mph (235km/h) by officers before being pulled over near Chippenham.
The 23-year-old pleaded guilty to drink driving and speeding
During a hearing at Swindon Magistrates' Court he was fined £692 and disqualified from driving for 22 months.
PC Andy Lee said: "His actions put himself, other drivers and road users in danger."
Apple has announced that its next iPhone software update will feature a ‘do not disturb while driving’ mode.
The iOS 11 update due out later this year, will provide all iPhones with the function, which is designed to address the dangers associated with smartphones and distraction.
The software will be able to sense when a person is driving, and when activated will block notifications from calls and texts as well as social media. The user won't even be able to access the phone’s homescreen to open apps. The driver will be able to set a personalised automatic text response to notify anyone attempting to make contact that they’re currently behind the wheel.
The new feature will assume a person is driving if their phone is connected to the car via Bluetooth. Alternatively, it will use a phone's WiFi antenna to sense when it’s moving at car speeds.
Passengers will be able to override the feature by turning on the screen with the iPhone power button and then clicking on a button marked ‘I'm not driving’.
Once the update has taken place, Apple will prompt drivers to use the new feature on the first occasion that they drive with an iOS 11-powered iPhone.
The move has been welcomed by the RAC, who are encouraging motorists through their campaign #BePhoneSmart to make a personal pledge to not use their handheld phone while driving.
It has also been welcomed by Brake, who describes mobile phone use behind the wheel as a 'growing menace'.
MOTORISTS who enter a bus lane or go through a red light to move out of the way to let an ambulance or police car through could be slapped with a fine.
The Highway Code states: “You should look and listen for ambulances,
fire engines, police, doctors or other emergency vehicles using flashing
blue, red or green lights and sirens, or flashing headlights, or
traffic officer and incident support vehicles using flashing amber
lights.”
The highway code also states that you should not panic and consider the route of the vehicle to take appropriate action. If you need to pull over, it suggests stopping before the brow of a hill, a bend or a narrow section of road.
It adds: “Do not endanger yourself, other road users or pedestrians and avoid mounting the kerb.
“Do not brake harshly on approach to a junction or roundabout, as a following vehicle may not have the same view as you.”
Blue Light Aware, is a campaign launched by GEM Motoring Assist, informs drivers on how best to help the emergency services.
Its website states: “Of course, there will be times when there simply
is no room for an emergency service vehicle to get past, or perhaps its
crew are activated by their control room to respond to an emergency
while they are waiting with everyone else at the traffic lights.
“On these occasions, they know that other motorists are not allowed
to ‘jump’ the red light, and the emergency vehicle would ideally not
activate its sirens and lights until it was safe for the vehicle in
front to cross the solid white line at the junction.
“On the (hopefully) rare occasions that a blue light vehicle, in
’emergency mode’, is sitting behind another vehicle at a red traffic
light, it’s important to appreciate that it would be both very dangerous
and illegal for the other vehicle to move across the solid white line.
“The exception to this is that a uniformed police officer can direct a motorist through a red traffic signal.”
In order to get advanced warnings about approaching emergency vehicles there is a product called Blu Eye which can alert you to their presence to give you more time to plan how you will move safely out of the way
Did you know that if your licence plate is too dirty to be read, you could get a fine of £1,000 as it's considered a driving offence.
A DVLA spokesman told The Sun:
"There is a specific offence under the Vehicle Excise and Registration
Act 1994 of obscuring or allowing a registration mark to be not easily
distinguishable."
All registration numbers must be displayed clearly and correctly on
the number plate - this helps enforcement agencies and
members of the public to correctly identify a vehicle to assist road
safety and traffic enforcement.
If police person spots a car with an obscured licence plate you could be hit
with a £50 fine immediately and then taken to court and further fined
another £1,000. Quite a bit more than a car wash or taking the effort to get the bucket out at home!
Other things that are illegal but you might not realise!
using an Apple Watch while you're driving is the same as using a
mobile phone (because you can make calls and check messages). It could put you in prison for up to two years! (same penalties as
for using a hand-held mobile phone).
Everyone of course knows that if
they want to answer a call on their phone and don't have hands-free then
they have to pull over. However did you know if you don't turn off the
engine while on the phone, you can still get charged!
Also other things that you need your hands for that you might be tempted to do whilst stuck in traffic including the following carry a fine of £100 and three points! this is because potentially they cause a distraction to the driver, and could be categorised as "careless driving".
A motorist reportedly racked up a whopping 99 points on his driving
licence after being caught speeding 11 times on the same bridge in less
than a month.
Vasile Ciuca, of Highfield Road in Felixstowe, was banned
from driving for six months after magistrates found him guilty in his
absence, according to the BBC.
The
20-year-old repeatedly broke the speed limit on Orwell Bridge in
Ipswich over a period of 25 days in October and
November last year, and was given three points on his licence for each
of the 11 times he was caught speeding. the broadcaster reported.
He
was then issued a further six points for each occasion after he was
found guilty of not telling police officers who was driving the car. Mr
Ciuca also received a £660 fine and was ordered to pay £149 in costs,
the BBC said.
New sentencing powers have recently come into force aimed at deterring speeding motorists. Drivers
who travel at excessively dangerous speeds,
including those who exceed 100 mph on motorways, could be fined up to
175 per cent of their weekly income.
In addition to the new fines, they
could also be banned from driving for 56 days and have six points added
to their licence.
Ever wondered which cameras earn the most revenue? look no further....
The following information is based on figures from 2015 (Worked out by Carole Nash using freedom of information request to the UK's largest county police constabularies).
THE 10 HIGHEST EARNING UK SPEED CAMERAS IN 2015
1. A1, Great Ponton North Bound, Lincolnshire - £606,400
2. M180, West of River Trent, Scunthorpe - £583,500
3. M25, London Orbital junction 17 and 18, Rickmansworth - £538,500
4. M25, London Orbital junction 5 and Clacket Lane Services -£373,300
5. A12, Stratford St Mary Southbound - £305,400
6. M25 London Orbital junction 18 and 17, Rickmansworth - £255,400
7. A22, Eastbourne Road, Halland - £167,100
8. A3, Esher Bypass, Hook - £149,700
9. A14, Bythorn, Cambridgeshire - £121,200
10. A34, Milton, Southbound - £63,600
Source: Carole Nash
The camera that caught the most people was located near Grantham in Lincolnshire It caught 6,064 speeders during 2015 (average of 19 per day) thats £600,000 in fines over just one year
The
fixed camera on the northbound carriageway of the A1 however is certainly not the most lucrative
standalone camera today......That's because it's no longer there.
It was replaced by eight
average speed cameras erected to monitor the route, which cost £750,000
to install last year, according to the Lincolnshire Echo.
The second most profitable speed camera,
according to the research, was further north in Lincolnshire - a
section of the M180 close to Scunthorpe caught 5,853 speeders that year,
clocking up £585,300 in fines.
Unsurprisingly,
Britain's busiest motorway - the M25 - had three separate locations
feature in Britain's 10 highest earning speed cameras on 2015.
All
three captured a whopping 12,122 speeders, resulting in £1.2million in
collective fines. The trio are between junctions 17 and 18 close to
Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, north west of London, in both directions,
and betrween junction 5 and Clacket Lane Services, south east of London,
in Surrey.
Rebecca Donohue, head of marketing at
Carole Nash, said: 'With some speed cameras issuing tickets that amount
to well into the hundreds of thousands it's understandable that, at
times, motorists feel like they are being taxed again.
'It's
really important to remember that such cameras are put in place to
reduce accidents and save the lives of motorists and bikers, something
which is far more important than any amount of money.
'We
wanted to find out which roads are prone to speeding motorists to help
raise awareness of the dangers in those areas and encourage bikers and
drivers alike to take extra care on these roads.'
NB Of the 35 forces contacted under the freedom of information act, 20 responded with information about their snap-happiest speed cameras
The driving examiner and student were taken back to the test centre, where the driving instructor was questioned by police. The Instructor a 46 year old female admitted knowing the car was not insured but denied knowing the car had no MoT, said police.
Police seized the car and took the driving instructor's badge. She
was reported to the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVLA) and will need
to provide valid insurance and MoT documents to police at a later date.
Aguri has just added tot heir range of popular products with the Fusion GTX200.
The GTX200 is both a GPS camera detector and a dash cam, all together in to one easy to use product. The GTX200 builds on the functions offered by its highly successful predecessor the Fusion GTX100.
The GTX200 is the ultimate speed trap detector with built-in high definition DVR dash
cam and Bluetooth wireless speed trap updates. It comes
preloaded with Aguri's latest speed trap database, so you can use it
straight out of the box. Their most advanced GPS speed trap detector with
outstanding radar and laser performance plus built-in HD dash cam
designed specifically for the UK and Europe. Fusion will provide
advanced warning of all types of speed traps plus 1000s of locations
where mobile speed traps and laser guns are commonly used. No
subscription charges and no download fees.
There are plans by the Driven Group to test driverless cars on UK roads and motorways in 2019. Previous tests of driverless vehicles in the UK have mainly taken place at slow speeds and not on public roads.
Oxbotica who makes software for driverless vehicles are leaders of the Driven Group. Some of their plans also include trying out a fleet of autonomous vehicles between London and Oxford. The
cars will communicate with each other about any hazards and should
operate with almost full autonomy - but will have a human on board as
well.
The project is backed by an £8.6m government grant
and involves an insurance company, which will assess the risks involved
at each stage of the journey.
The UK government has committed about £100m in total towards autonomous driving projects and has said it wants Britain to "lead the way in developing" the tech.
An innovative 'super speed
camera' dubbed a car driver's worst nightmare could be making its way
to Britain's roads after successful initial tests.
The
speed camera created by Belgian company SecuRoad utilises infrared
lights and can be hidden in different locations such as rubbish bins or
vehicles.
The speed camera, named 'NK7', can be used without anyone
operating it and will cost about €50,000 (£42,000).
The use infrared lights by the camera means that drivers do not
notice if they are caught on camera. Whats more just one of the devices can simultaneously monitor three driving lanes in each direction.
Belgian authorities have already put the camera into active use and currently have 30 of them at their disposal. They hide them inside rubbish bins and put on the pavement next to a street
where they want to enforce a speed limit.
Germany is said to have also started to
use similar speed cameras, and Deerlijk-based SecuRoad has plans to use
the devices in other countries in Western Europe.
Earlier
this week it was revealed that British motorists face being stung with
fines of up to £640 for speeding in Europe under a controversial change
to EU law.
But European drivers caught
breaking the limit in the UK will not be hit with the same penalties
because of a difference in motoring laws in Britain.
Meanwhile
drivers caught well over the speed limit from next week face a fine
amounting to 150 per cent of their weekly earnings.
The
higher fines came in to force yesterday and mean any motorists found
guilty of the most serious speeding offences may have to cough-up
one-and-a-half times their weekly pay to cover the cost of their
excessive speeding.
For more images of the camera in use please visit the article Source BBC
A lane in Surrey has been challenging drivers to keep to a speed limit which seems to defy logic.
On Wotton Drive, in Dorking
, people are tasked with driving at eight and three-quarter miles per
hour as they approach the entrance to De Vere Wotton House. The unique speed limit is one of many quirks at at the luxury hotel.
Some believe this quirk is a reference to the world-famous
series by JK Rowling, in which young wizards and witches begin their
journey to Hogwarts by running through a brick wall between platforms
nine and ten - platform 9 3/4.
The management of De Vere Wotton House said the reasons behind the limit was to add a touch of "magic" to guests' visit.
"There is no real logical reason - it's to add a bit of
magic, and make visiting the hotel a more interesting experience," said
Tracy Montgomerie.
"It's pretty quirky, and there are
other surprises around the hotel and grounds for visitors. We had a six
million pound refurbishment and wanted to do something different.
“The eight and three-quarters limit is one of those details.
The maximum limit on the road with bumps is ten miles an hour, but we
didn't want to be too straight-laced.
"It is funny, I don't think anyone can actually do eight and three-quarter miles per hour."
An Electrician attempted to cut down a speed camera in Poole with a saw, a court has heard.
Stuart Langley was spotted sawing at the camera in Bournemouth Road by a police officer who was passing in a marked car shortly before
11pm on Wednesday, March 8.
The camera enforces a 30mph speed limit on the hill down into Ashley Cross.
Langley, of Harvest Close in Tilehurst, Reading, appeared at Poole
Magistrates' Court on Friday to admit a single charge of causing
criminal damage to the camera.
Prosecuting, Lee Turner said the police officer saw a red Mercedes van parked on the hill next to the camera.
"As he drives past, he sees a male standing by the speed camera
holding a large object against the raised arm of the camera," Mr Turner
said.
"It looks like he's sawing."
The man was seen putting something into the van as he was approached by the officer.
"He identifies himself as Mr Langley. The officer believes the defendant is drunk," Mr Turner said.
"The officer inspects the camera and can see saw marks on the metal
strut of the camera in the same place he saw the sawing motion taking
place.
"[The defendant] was clearly trying to cut down the arm of the camera."
Mitigating, Holly Huxtable said: "The saw used, on Mr Langley's own
admission, would not have managed to bring something like this camera
down.
"This is a rather silly incident."
She said Langley, 30, had downed whiskey before trying to damage the camera.
"At the time of this offence, he told me he had found out his granddad had passed away," Ms Huxtable said.
"He bought a bottle of whiskey and consumed the whole lot.
"There was no real intention to do significant damage.
"He was drunk and it was a stupid act.
"He doesn't quite know what he was hoping to achieve."
No significant damage was caused to the camera, it was heard.
Sentencing Langley to a 12-month conditional discharge, as well as
£105 in costs and fines, presiding magistrate Mike Davis said: "What a
stupid thing to be doing under the influence of drink."
In winter sometimes fallen leaves can obscure yellow lines, resulting in
drivers receiving parking fines for stopping on roads where they
thought that it was ok to park.
