Speed limit roulette, anyone? One in four speed cameras are switched off
If you're planning a road trip over the bank holiday, here's a bit of good news: one in four speed cameras are switched off, it turns out.
That's according to data obtained under a freedom of information request by insurance comparison site Confused.com, which found out that of the 1,714 fixed speed camera sites in the UK, 23 per cent are not currently in use. Although we wouldn't take our chances – the ones that do work caught 968,715 people last year. That's 565 people each – 1.5 people a day.
From the police's perspective, it looks like mobile camera units are more effective – their 345 mobile cameras caught 774,537 people last year. That's 2,245 each, or six a day.
The study also found that one driver, in Avon & Somerset, was caught speeding at 144mph earlier this year, although someone in Leicestershire hit 142mph.
Meanwhile, 66 per cent of drivers admitted to speeding, with 18 per cent saying they go over the speed limit "on a daily basis". However, less than a third have actually been caught.
That could be because 58 per cent said they hit the accelerator once they've passed the speed camera, while 23 per cent said speed cameras don't affect their driving at all. Although 70 per cent said speed cameras do prevent them from speeding. So perhaps there is a reason for that expenditure….