Mobile speed camera sign removal hasn’t cut toll

Removing warning signs from mobile speed cameras has not yet slashed the road toll as promised – with the latest figures showing an increase in fatal crashes this year, despite lockdowns.

Removing warning signs from mobile speed cameras has not yet slashed the road toll as promised – with the latest figures showing an increase in fatal crashes this year, despite lockdowns.

To date this year there’s been 173 fatal crashes in NSW – two more than for same period last year, the NSW Centre for Road Safety reported on Wednesday.

While Covid lockdowns appear to have cut the number of pedestrian and passenger deaths – with seven fewer deaths than last year – the number of driver deaths has risen.

Mobile speed camera signs.

And motorbike deaths have also jumped by 52 per cent - up from 25 last year to 38.

When NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance announced the removal of the warning signs for the mobile speed cameras, he cited university modelling that “up to 54 lives could be saved every year”.

The warning signs used to be located 250m before and 50m after each secret mobile speed cameras, giving motorists an opportunity to check their speed.

Now the revenue from tolls has soared.

M4 motorway in Sydney in normal times - but the traffic volumes had halved by April in Sydney.

Since January, $22.8 million worth of fines has been collected on low range speeding offences of less than 10km/h - a whopping 1409 per cent increase compared to the same period last year.

During the lockdown month of July alone, the Berejiklian Government collected $3 million in fines for secret mobile speed cameras for offences of less than 10km over the limit.

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury said warning signs for speed cameras had an educational value, and described the latest road toll figures as “worrying”.

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Nikki Short

“The NRMA has always been of the view that the warning sign is really important, because they act as an education tool,” he said.

“They encourage people to adjust their behaviour. Our position is you should have warning signs for mobile speed cameras and it has been our position for many years.”

“Driver deaths are up in these figures, which is a worry, and motorcyclist are up significantly, which is a worry.”

“And the number of deaths outside Sydney, in country areas, has skyrocketed and unfortunately men are over represented.”

NSW Labor called for the government to bring back warning signs ahead of the mobile speed camera vans. While the government “half backflipped” earlier this month and announced it would bring back 1000 warning signs, they will be fixed and not set up in front of the mobile vans.

NSW Leader of the Opposition Chris Minns. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

“The money grab has got to stop,” Labor leader Chris Minns said. “We are in the midst of a pandemic and the last thing drivers need is to be slugged with low range speeding fines.”

Opposition roads spokesman John Graham said the government was fining more people in a month than they did previously in a year.

“We’ve now had six consecutive months where the Government has collected over $3 million in fines across the state,” he said.

A spokeswoman for Transport Minister Andrew Constance said this year’s road toll is “one down on the same time last year (185 deaths in 2020 vs 184 deaths in 2021) making it the lowest road toll we have seen in NSW since the 1920s”.

“Noting there have been reductions in traffic volumes due to COVID and restrictions, there have been 61 fewer deaths on our roads compared to the previous three year average,” she said.

“We’re pleased to see the mobile speed camera program making some really significant changes to driver behaviour.

“In June 3.5 drivers were caught for every hour of enforcement, down from 5 every hour in February.”

The spokeswoman said the motorbike increase was “extremely worrying”.