Rise in fine revenue proves speed cameras don’t make drivers slow down

The Queensland Government is planning to introduce more speed cameras, arguing the move will save lives. But that argument doesn’t seem to stack up, writes Mike O’Connor.

ONE of the advantages of being in politics is the dispensation from uttering anything remotely resembling the truth that you receive on being elected.

Honesty is a burden that governments find too heavy to bear and one most usually left by the roadside as they obfuscate their way to the next election.

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The revelation that the Palaszczuk Government is quietly planning to introduce more speed cameras is an example of this preferred method of operation.

The Government argues the cameras save lives by causing people to observe speed limits and are not used to raise revenue. This is a noble aim and who could argue against it?

One can’t help but wonder, however, that if they are effective in causing people to slow down, why it is that the number of infringements issued continues to rise?

A speed camera parked on the footpath on Kelvin Grove Road in Kelvin Grove.

If it was being successful in increasing the observation of speed limits, then surely as drivers slowed down then the number of offences detected and the subsequent revenue flow would decrease.

The opposite is the case. Last year speeding and red-light camera offences raised $444 million. This year that figure is projected to be $469 million, and the year after that it will hit $504 million.

The Transport Department says installing more cameras will “lead to increased infringements and, therefore, increased revenue projection over coming years” but State Transport Minister Mark Bailey says rolling out more cameras has nothing to do with making money.

Displaying an enviable grasp of his portfolio, the minister declared that “if motorists stick to the signed speed limit, they won’t get fined”.

Generic pics of the fixed speed cameras on the underside of the bridge at the Ipswich Motorway turn-off. Pics Adam Head

The reality is most people don’t speed and if they do get caught so doing, it’s because their speed crept above the prescribed limit without them noticing. The people who flash past as you drive up the highway at 100km/h are the hardcore recalcitrants who will ignore the law regardless of consequence.

Queensland Transport Minister Mark Bailey. Picture: AAP Image/Aaron Bunch

You could point to the fall in the state’s road toll as proof that speed cameras are working, but you could argue equally this is due to quantum leaps in the lifesaving safety features built into modern cars.

What is more revealing are the figures compiled by insurer Budget Direct showing injuries sustained in car accidents have been on the rise since 2001. “Injuries sustained in road accidents are 27 times higher than those of fatality rates, and there are concerns that this number will continue to rise,” the study said.

Less people are dying but more people are being involved in crashes and being injured. But how can this be if the policy of rolling out more and more speed cameras is being so successful in slowing people down?

One way of improving public safety would be to improve public transport, and therefore reduce the number of cars on the road.

However, as Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner noted this week: “The State Government first highlighted the need for a 75km network of busways in 1997. However, more than 20 years later, only one third of this busway network has been constructed.”

Minister Bailey has since confirmed a timetable to complete the busways was non-existent, but a timetable for more speed cameras? That’s another story.

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