05/08/2008

Speed Cameras Snap Up £100 Million In Fines

Speeding tickets are raising more than £100 million in fines, with a million more tickets now being issued every year than a decade ago.

Conservative Shadow Police Reform Minister, David Ruffley, said official figures showed 1,773,412 penalty notices were given to drivers in 2006, up from 712,753 in 1997.

The figures include those caught on cameras as well as those stopped by police.

Mr Ruffley said "ministers need to tell us what they are doing with this £100 million a year taken from motorists".

"How much is actually put back into practical road safety that does not involve speed cameras?

"Ministers' failure to answer that question confirms the view that for this government the British motorist is a 'nice little earner'."

He added that the Government needed to "rethink ways of improving road safety".

A spokesman for the Department of Transport said "safety cameras are there to save lives, not make money".

He added that independent research showed that there are 1,745 fewer deaths and serious injuries at camera sites each year.

Road safety charity Brake said speed cameras and speed restrictions were "aiding the battle to keep accidents down".

The cost of a Fixed Penalty Notice has risen from £40 to £60 in 2000, which translates to the cash increased from £28.5 million to £106.4 million.

In 1997, there were 712,753 speeding tickets issued as a result of motorists being caught by camera and police patrols.

(DS)

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