New speed camera to be tested in city

The Safety Camera Partnership has announced that it is to begin a scheme utilising a more temporary and flexible version of its mobile speed cameras.

The new equipment will work on the same technological basis as the current system but instead of connecting to a permanent post fixed at the side of the road, the enforcement officers will connect temporary air tubes to the road surface.

The scheme, the first in the West Mercia force area, will begin at Woodgreen Drive, Warndon Villages, between the roundabout junctions with Mill Wood Drive and Dugdale Drive, this week.

The area has been chosen in response to residents' concern about speeding vehicles after the last three years have seen six collisions in which people have suffered injuries along that section of the road.

It will be used in addition to the existing mobile cameras at the northern end of the road.

Enforcement

"We want to remind drivers that the 30mph speed limit applies to the whole route and not just to the northern section of the road where we have a permanent site," said Heather Mead, the partnership's communications manager.

"If it proves successful, we may extend its use to other enforcement sites where a longer length of road needs to be targeted.

"It will also enable us to monitor whether vehicles are complying with the speed limit away from the permanently installed sites."

The technology, which has proved a success in other areas of the UK, would be reviewed after about four weeks of use in Worcester, she added.

Two weeks ago, the Evening News reported that the four-week August trial of the Vehicle Activated Sign, situated next to the New Road county cricket ground, cut the number of offences detected to around 25 per day.

Before installation of the sign, which is the only one in the West Mercia Force area that reminds motorists of the 30mph speed limit and the presence of a safety camera, the number of offences detected was around 60 - 70 per day.