Audit supports road safety cameras

A report from the Victorian Auditor-General has backed the technology, which brought in about $211 million revenue for the government in 2009-2010

Road safety cameras – speed and red light -- improve road safety and revenue is not the primary purpose of the program, according to a report released today (August 31) by the Victorian Auditor-General (VAG).

In the 90-page report, the VAG identified a number of so-called road safety camera misconceptions which included:

The purpose of the road safety camera program is to raise revenue;
Low-level speeding is safe;
Road safety cameras don’t reduce road trauma;
Road safety cameras are sited to maximise revenue;
Speed cameras should not be placed on freeways because freeways are safe; and
The cameras are faulty, as shown by the fines withdrawn from the Road Safety Act 1986.

The VAG then countered these so-called misconceptions with its own 'evidence'.

"This report, tabled in Parliament today, found Victoria's speed and red-light cameras are focused on road safety, not raising revenue," stated Victorian Deputy Premier and Police Minister Peter Ryan. "Auditor-General Des Pearson has independently validated the state's road safety camera program and quashed the common misconception these cameras are revenue raisers."

According to Mr Ryan, the report "underscored the fairness" of Victoria Police’s approach to issuing infringements from the road safety camera program.

The VAG concluded that the ongoing use of road safety cameras as an enforcement tool remains appropriate. The report continued: “The supporting technology used and the way the camera system operates provides a high degree of confidence that infringements are issued only where there is clear evidence of speeding or red-light running.

“Any program that aims to deter dangerous and risky behaviour through the use of fines will generate revenue, but this is demonstrably not the primary purpose of the road safety camera program. In fact, more revenue could be raised through tightening operational policies that provide for some leniency to speeding drivers and therefore reduce the number of infringements issued.

“The deployment and siting of fixed and mobile cameras is based on the road safety objectives of the program. Further revisions to operational approaches, such as random deployment of mobile cameras, should however strengthen the program.

“While there can be no absolute guarantee over the accuracy of any system, the processes and controls in place provide a particularly high level of confidence in the reliability and integrity of the road safety camera system.

“There are aspects of the program that can be further strengthened to allay public perceptions about its integrity and purpose. First, the lack of past evaluations of fixed speed cameras on freeways, and failure to provide for the ongoing, systematic review of their efficacy is a gap in Victoria’s evaluation program. Second, mobile cameras warrant a program of independent testing of their accuracy under actual operating conditions -- as is the case for fixed cameras.”

The road safety camera program has been operating in Victoria since 1983, and is a component of Victoria’s current road safety strategy, arrive alive 2008-2017, which aims to reduce road trauma by 30 percent.

In 2009-2010, 1,156,673 infringements were issued from road safety cameras for speeding and 147,505 for red-light running. Revenue collected from these infringements amounted to $211.3 million, which is 0.47 percent of the total general government revenue for that period.

Victoria is not alone in its speed and red light camera coverage; most other states and territories have similar infrastructure in place, ensuring Australia is one of the most speed restrictive countries in the world.

Road safety program report

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Audit supports road safety cameras

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