Mobile speed camera fines in NSW topped $ 40 million in past 12 months



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Drivers in NSW have paid a $ 40 million mobile speed camera bill in the past year, with a Sydney suburb paying more than half a million in fines.

The southbound lane of Pennant Hills Road in Carlingford tops the list of mobile speed camera fines, with 4,105 imposed from December 2020 to November 2021, for a total of $ 573,588.

Drivers who were also caught exceeding the limit of 10 km / h or less by mobile digital radar on Knox Road, Doonside, were fined $ 497,938 during the same period.

A mobile camera in Newcastle Road in Wallsend topped the list for the regional NSW, with 2,581 fines imposed.

Other areas with high fines include Northmead in Windsor Road, Hume Highway in Casula and Pittwater Road in Collaroy, all collecting more than 2,500 fines each in the past year.

Data shows that the number of mobile digital speed cameras where the speed limit was exceeded by 10 km / h or less increased from 3,222 in October 2020 to 27,855 in February 2021.

The increase in fines for those exceeding the limit of 10 km / h or less coincided with the phasing out of mobile speed camera warning signs from November of last year.

The state government has said it is removing the signs to improve road safety.

At the time, Transport Minister Andrew Constance said removing warning signs was in line with other jurisdictions and would save lives.

“No warning sign means you can be caught anywhere, anytime and we want the same culture around mobile speed cameras,†Mr Constance said in November 2022.

NSW drivers questioned by mobile speed cameras in the five years to November 2020 paid $ 14.8 million in fines, raising concerns about the gigantic increase that followed.

The opposition said it was easy to see why some people saw this as “an increase in income”.

“They are facing more radar fines in 12 months than in the previous five years,” Labor leader Chris Minns said.

Labor spokesman for roads John Graham said warning signs must go up ahead of the Christmas holiday traffic.

“The Prime Minister has indicated that the warning signs will be back, there is no sign of this happening,” he said.

“We want these warning signs to be put back in place by Christmas before families are on the move, to slow down drivers, to educate drivers about the risks of speeding,” Graham said.

In response to concerns about increased fines, the state government announced that it will be deploying 1,000 warning signs statewide.

Prime Minister Dominic Perrottet has tasked Regional Transport and Highways Minister Paul O’Toole and Transport Minister Rob Stokes with changing the government’s road safety awareness strategy.

“We both agree that speeding must stop, but that more recalls, rather than more fines, is the way to do it,” said Mr. O’Toole.

“We are deploying an additional 1,000 signs statewide, but there is still a lot to be done to get the message out to ‘slow down’.”

The government intends to release more details of its plan before the end of 2021.

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