Do speed cameras really cut accidents?

Motorists in Oxfordshire may feel a little more free with the accelerator from Tuesday as the council was due to switch off its fixed speed cameras. The move is angering some safety campaigners but others say it will have little impact on accident figures.

The ultimatum comes after Downing Street announced it would be cutting the road safety budgets it gives to English and Welsh local authorities by 40%, as part of the wider efforts to reduce public spending. With a number of other local authorities saying they are likely to follow suit, the key questions are whether speed cameras have been successful in reducing road traffic accidents, and if we may now see a rise in such incidents.

Thames Valley Safer Roads Partnership, the organisation that operates the speed cameras in Oxfordshire on behalf of the council, has already said it fears a big increase in accidents.

Figures from the partnership appear to back up this claim. They show that at the 212 fixed camera sites across the wider Thames Valley region - which also includes Buckinghamshire and Berkshire - there was a 38% drop in vehicle collisions.

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source: BBC