Residents of Dubbo have voiced their concerns that changes to the Mobile Speed Camera program is more of a revenue raising exercise, rather than a safety enforcement one.
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The NSW government announced in November the Mobile Speed Camera Program would have a three-phase approach. First the removal of portable signage before and after mobile speed camera cars, second the removal of vehicle markings and then a boost to the hours cameras spend operating.
It's expected 70 per cent of vehicles will have their markings reduced, and 30 per cent will have markings removed entirely over the first quarter of 2021.
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Road safety advocate Rod Hannifey told the Daily Liberal he wanted to know who determines where the mobile speed cameras are placed and questioned the locations they had been seen located in Dubbo.
"Are they there for money, or are they there for road safety?," he said.
"And if they're there for road safety who decides [where they're located] and are they really in the best place in Dubbo?"
Other residents echoed Mr Hannifey's concerns via social media with many believing the new measures would be a revenue raising exercise, arguing high visibility was the best deterrent for speeding.
"Safety is not receiving a fine in the mail four weeks later, safety is high visibility so everyone slows down," Eddie Roberts said.
"They don't sit in the black spot where all the accidents happen. Only sit where they can make revenue," Warwick Sheil commented.
"Are they trying to get people to slow down or is it revenue raising. It's the same as police cars, if they are seen driving around it makes drivers adjust their speed if speeding," Youlia Whitby said.
However other residents argued don't do the crime, then you won't cop the fine.
"...Either way a lot of drivers slow down at warnings or random cameras and then increase to an illegal speed after warning and/or getting an on the spot fine. If we stick to speed limit, no one gets our money, stays in our own pockets," Mary Warren commented.
Member for the Dubbo electorate Dugald Saunders said changes being made to mobile speed cameras in NSW are based on research conducted in a number of other states around better road safety and reducing fatalities.
"While I understand people have concerns around these changes and some would suggest it is purely a revenue raising exercise, the simple fact is if you don't speed you have nothing to worry about," he said.
The Centre for Road Safety website states that the locations of mobile speed cameras are based on road safety criteria determined by Transport for NSW in consultation with the NSW Police force and the NRMA.
Transport for NSW deputy secretary for safety, environment and regulation Tara McCarthy said with the changes, speed enforcement could now be conducted at high-risk locations that were previously unable to be enforced due to safety issues regarding the placement of signage.
"Mobile speed cameras operate in locations where there is a high frequency and severity of crashes or high crash risk, as well as in locations identified for enforcement by police or nominated by the community," she said.
"Enforcement sites in these locations are selected based on various operational and safety requirements."
In NSW, speeding contributes to around 41 per cent of road fatalities and nearly a quarter (24 per cent) of serious injuries each year. In 2019, 136 people in NSW lost their lives and 2,941 were injured because someone was speeding.
According to Transport for NSW research shows that best practice speed enforcement programs should be designed to deter drivers from exceeding the speed limit at all times through general deterrence.
"Unpredictability and network coverage are key principles in the deployment of mobile speed cameras," Ms McCarthy said.
"The perception that enforcement could be anywhere, anytime is the most effective way to deter drivers from speeding across the network."
There are currently 45 mobile speed vehicles in operation in NSW.
The locations where mobile speed cameras operate will continue to be published on the Centre for Road Safety website.