[ABD Logo]The Association of British Drivers
Local Issues — Warwickshire

A Warwickshire talivan collecting money on the A5 at Dordon between Atherstone and the M42 (Map). This section of road, which is built up on only one side, has been reduced to 50mph; and an excessive number of traffic islands prevent any overtaking, now they want to lower the limit to 40mph. No prizes for guessing why.
©Pro-Motor Ltd 2004
ABD Local co-ordinator: Email  

 
 
2008-01-1
Speed Limit Review
Warwickshire County Council are planning to review speed limits across the county. With the current irrational obsession about 'speeding', no prizes for guessing which way they want to move them. You can find out more and have your say below. If you live in Warwickshire, contact your local councillor too.
2007-07-27
Campaign Against B4439 40 Limit
A campaign has been launched to counter calls to reduce the speed limit on the B4439 Old Warwick Road between Hockley Heath and Lapworth from 60mph to 40mph. If you use this road take action to counter the do-gooders immediately.
2006-12-16
£2,500,000 Per Year
Official figures have revealed how speed cameras in Warwickshire are raking in £2.5M per year, with an average of 100 drivers mugged each day.
Ex-Cop Reveals Speed Camera Cash Scam

An ex-cop who was formerly the boss of the speed camera operation in Warwickshire and now runs a private company based in Warwick flogging speed cameras, has revealed the extent of the financial scam behind speed cameras. Ensnared by Mail on Sunday reporters posing as representatives of an East European company wanting to set up a speed camera racket in their country, Tele-Traffic boss Jon Bond said "There will be so much money coming in you won't know what to do with it."
He also revealed how new government rules were designed to ensure as much money as possible went straight to the treasury.
A5 Limits to Drop Again — Object Now!
The Highways Agency have published public notices announcing their intention to reduce the speed limit on the A5 between and the M42 and M69 again (Map).
The perfectly good rural dual-carriageway between the M42 and Dordon currently has a temporary 50mph limit — until a few years ago it was NSLA. The stretch between the traffic lights and Dordon limit will be made permanent; though in an amazing burst of common sense, the stretch between the M42 and the traffic lights will go back to NSLA.
The 50mph section between Dordon and Grendon is to be reduced to 40mph. This is a favourite spot for their Talivan and the proposal is clearly intended as a money raising exercise. Strangely the speed camera van has not been seen here for some weeks. Expect to see it back if the speed limit drops to 40mph, so they can catch all those dangerous drivers travelling at the reckless speed of 50mph.
A reduction to 50mph or 40mph is planned along the 8 mile stretch between Witherley Island, Atherstone and the M69, despite much of this route being entirely rural in nature (Map).
Beware the Bike
The Warwickshire speed camera partnership have adopted a new measure to try and raise more money, they've bought a speed camera equipped motorbike which is far less visible than a van.
WCSP Press Release
 
 
Ryton Cameras Still There
Despite the new roundabout on the A45 at Ryton, the speed cameras and 50mph limit that were supposedly there because of the previous dangerous junction are still in place.
Are we surprised? Not at all.
Are the speed camera partnership honest? Same answer.
 
 
Tyre Slashings Continue
Since May 2005, over 400 cars in Coventry, Nuneaton and Bedworth have had their tyres slashed by vandals. Total damage is estimated at over £40,000. Although one man has been charged and bailed, the motive for the attacks appears unknown.
Police have appealed to the public to keep their eyes and ears open, particularly between midnight and dawn when all the attacks have taken place.
If you spot anyone behaving suspiciously near parked cars late at night, dial 999.
 
"A reward of up to £1000 has been put forward by Crimestoppers for information leading to the arrest and charge of the person or people responsible and the information can be given anonymously by contacting the Crimestoppers line on 0800 555111."
Chief Inspector Neil Hewison, District Commander for Nuneaton
In April 2004, a man who slashed the tyres of 548 vehicles in Bournemouth was jailed for 16 months.
Source:
National Statistics — Road Casualties in Great Britain
2004: Coventry Evening Telegraph
Accidents Up — Despite Lies By Speed Camera Partnership
 
Road accidents in Warwickshire have actually increased, in contrast to the lies and propaganda put out by the speed camera partnership. Offcial government figures show that deaths in 2004 were the same as in 2001. Serious injuries reduced by only 5 from 2003. Slight injuries increased by 40 in 2004, a similar rise to that in 2003.
 
The Warwickshire Safety Camera Partnership have recently claimed that significant reductions in accidents have occured, but quitely qualify their claim by saying "at our camera sites". This is a deliberately attempt to deceive the public. Accidents occur at random, no-one knows where the next one is going to happen, they don't keep happening at the same place. So when a fatal accident happens, all the pratnership have to do is put in a speed camera and wait a year. Miraculously, no further accidents happen, and they immediately get on the phone to the local press and radio and claim the cameras have saved lives. Unfortunately, gullible journalists swallow the hook without question.
 
So while fatal accidents may well not have occurred at camera sites, they've simply happened somewhere else in the county. This apparent reduction in accidents at the site of previous accidents would have occurred if they had put plastic gnomes beside the road instead of speed cameras, and is a well known statistical phenomenon known as 'regression to the mean'.
 
 
Warwick Traffic Management Scheme
The county council are proposing to inflict a "traffic management scheme" on Warwick Town Centre. They are talking about 'traffic calming', 20mph limits, road closures, additional delays and the usual politically correct rubbish.

The ABD sent the letter below to the Coventry Evening Telegraph in response to this article:
CET — Row over A45 speed cameras   2004-08-11
 
Dear Sirs
 
HOW MANY MORE HAVE TO DIE AT RYTON BEFORE THEY STOP PLAYING GAMES WITH CAMERAS?
 
The comments made by Camera Partnership man Stephen Rumble about the A45 Ryton cameras (11 Aug) were both revealing and disturbing. They show how weak the link is between road safety and the use of speed cameras, and point the way to why real safety improvements are not happening on Britain's roads.
 
Justifying the three eastbound fixed cameras, Rumble had this to say:
"The first two cameras (coming into Coventry) are there for an obvious reason - to protect people turning to cross the A45. The third camera by the Ryton plant was put in because of a number of collisions happening where the slip road joins the A45."
Since both the speed limit of 50mph and the safety "solution" of a camera before the junction are the same in both locations, Mr Rumble must therefore believe that a slip road joining a dual carriageway is equally as dangerous as a turning such as Ryton, which has traffic turning across the main flow! This is patently absurd, and I defy Mr Rumble to produce details of any accident that happened because a driver on the A45 was doing 60mph instead of 50mph at the site of this third camera. If he can't, this camera should be removed, or the limit increased until he can demonstrate that someone breaking it can cause a credible hazard.
 
If the authorities can't see any difference between a slip road and a conventional junction, then its no wonder they are dragging their heels over the real solution to the Ryton Junction blackspot — a proper junction with slip roads. The truly outrageous fact is that this whole sorry drama has already been played out on the A45 to the west of Coventry. Speed limits were reduced and cameras were placed where traffic could turn across the central reservation. But all of these openings were subsequently closed off because, just like at Ryton, all the cameras can achieve is for careless drivers to hit each other at still fatal speeds.
 
Of course, the cameras remain, using accidents that can't happen anymore to justify their useless existance.
 
Mr Rumble sinks even deeper into the mire when he tries to justify the use of camera vans between the fixed camera locations:
"We are aware that some people get used to where the fixed cameras are and surf between them. We want to encourage people to slow down all the time. It is just that extra level to encourage people to stick to the limit."
This is a clear admission that mobile camera vans are nothing to do with safety. Lets look at the facts. The national speed limit for dual carriageways is 70mph. This has been reduced to 50mph on this stretch because of accidents at the junctions. Fixed cameras have been placed at all the junctions, where the accidents have happened. Thats the full extent of the road safety basis for Mr Rumble's argument, so that should be the end of the story. But it isnt. The cat is out of the bag — Rumble has admitted that they are enforcing the completely unnecessary 50mph limit between the fixed camera locations purely for its own sake. Its nothing to do with safety — and you heard it from his own lips.
 
If the authorities want to rebuild their lost credibility with the motoring public, they need to take the following actions:
 
1 Reinstate the 70mph limit from where the bend unwinds to the west of the Ryton junctions to the roundabout.
2 End the use of mobile cameras on this stretch
3 Instigate the immediate upgrade of the Ryton junction to eliminate the black spot, with the fixed cameras and 50 limit being removed on completion.
 
Nigel Humphries
National Media Spokesman
Association of British Drivers

 

HGV Drivers Beware!

This camera on the A5 Eastbound just before the A444 junction has been set up to catch HGVs doing more than 40mph.
 
A5 Speed Camera Targetting HGVs at 40
The speed camera on the A5 Eastbound just prior to the A444 Junction is able to distinguish between cars and HGVs, and has been setup to catch HGVs exceeding the 40mph single carriageway limit.
The speed camera is well hidden by a large tree and a large speed camera sign — it's the only example we have of a camera being hidden by it's own warning sign!
There is an additional warning sign saying "Speed Camera 200m" before the camera, however, there is no warning sign for HGVs drivers that they will be prosecuted at speeds above 40mph.
The ABD regards the 40mph speed limit for HGVs on single carriageways as completely unnecessary and actually causing more accidents than it prevents due to holding up other traffic. This causes frustration and impatience which can in turn lead to poorly judged overtaking manouveurs. The limit fails to distinguish between narrow twisting B roads (on which 40 or lower may be appropriate), and wide straight A roads like the A5 (on which 60 is quite safe), and should be scrapped.
HGVs following cars doing 60mph will easily be caught out as the cars will not need to brake, and thus give no warning to HGV drivers. We'd ask car drivers to consider slowing to 40 if they are being followed by an HGV in such circumstances, otherwise we'll all go to the supermarket one day and find the shelves bare because our clueless government has banned all the HGV drivers.
We are also very concerned that cars travelling within their 60mph speed limit behind a lorry doing 50mph will not be expecting it to brake suddenly to 40, and that this could lead to an accident.
Please warn other drivers about this camera!
 
Propaganda from Warkwickshire Talivan suggests other speed cameras in Warwickshire may also have been setup to increase their takings.
 
This camera has previously been attacked by one of its unfortunate victims:
Evening Mail — Speed radar felled
 
 

This Truvelo speed camera appeared on the A446 in April 2004.
 
New A446 Toll Road Opens
A new Truvelo forward facing speed camera has appeared on the A446 between Bassett's Pole island and the Belfry. This is the road used by those who don't want to pay a toll to drive on the M6 Toll that runs alongside, including HGV drivers who are boycotting the M6 Toll in protest at the charges.
In the background is a blue camera used to monitor overall traffic speed for the Trafficmaster information system.
The A446 is NSLA and our local members report no knowledge of any serious accidents in the vicinity of the camera.
Notice the white lines painted across the roadway at the camera. These are actually three narrow lines painted close together. Their significance (and legality) is unknown.
We don't know if the Truvelo camera is able to trap HGVs exceeding the 40mph limit, but the cynical might suggest that it is there to 'encourage' them to pay the motorway toll. If you are an HGV driver who has been done by this camera for a speed between 40 and 60 please let us know.
Another Truvelo has been installed near the Belfry targetting Northbound traffic.
 
 

The Birch Coppice junction on the A5 was to be the test site for new PolTec combined red light and speed cameras, only PolTec have gone bust.
Oh dear, how sad, never mind.
 
Down-Under SpeedCam Co goes Under
We reported earlier that drivers using the A5 Watling Street east of M42 Junction 10, were to become unwitting guinea pigs for new Australian 'PolTec' speed cameras. The cameras operate as both red light and speed cameras, and will photograph both the front and rear of vehicles. They allow downloading of data by phone line, enabling the police to indulge in an orgy of prosecutions without having to go out in the cold.
We are now delighted to report that PolTec has gone bust. They were involved in the farce on the Melbourne ring road in which over 165,000 drivers were wrongly fined by a faulty camera.
The Age — Labor slammed for speed camera fiasco
The A5 here is a long straight dual carriageway which was previously NSLA, reasonably reducing to 50 mph as you enter Dordon. The speed limit for the entire road has now unnecessarily been reduced to 50 mph so that they can rake in more cash from unsuspecting drivers travelling at a perfectly safe speed for the road. Their excuse is the new industrial estate at Birch Coppice, complete with it's own artificial mountain. The junction for this estate is controlled by traffic lights which can be clearly seen from some distance. The speed limit reduction is completely unjustifiable and has clearly only been done to provide a test site for the cameras. If they though the junction might be dangerous, why didn't they build a roundabout?
 
 
New camera on A4091
A new Gatso speed camera has been installed on the A4091 southbound between Fazeley and the Belfry, near to the Aston Villa training ground. The camera has a substantial crash barrier round it and a paved parking area for a maintenance vehicle. It is located on a straight stretch of wide single carriageway (formerly three lane) road, just after the ridiculous 'dual carriageway' at Middleton that has been narrowed to one lane each way by white paint. We're not aware of the staggered crossroads some two hundred metres beyond the camera being an accident blackspot, but assume that will be the justification they will use. A speed warning sign has also been installed just prior to the junction, which is likely to have a much bigger effect on accidents than the speed camera, but guess which one will get the credit?
Road Safety?
Meanwhile, having spent some £30,000 on speed camera and warning sign in the name of 'road safety', guess how much they've spent on cutting the hedges so drivers pulling out of Brick Kiln Lane can see what's coming? — absolutely nothing.
In October 2005, this camera was set alight:

A45 Ryton
The A45 through Ryton now has a 50mph speed limit enforced by several Truvelo speed cameras. The limit was reduced from 60 supposedly to reduce accidents at the A445 junction and in Ryton itself.
On Sunday 14th September 2003, a bad accident occured at this junction necessitating the closure of the road. The speed camera had clearly failed to prevent the accident.
A new roundabout is under construction at the A445 junction, work will take 6 months, and as usual the speed limit has been reduced to 40mph for an excessive distance either side of the works.
A speed camera has also been installed on the A45 westbound beneath the bridge at Ryton where there is a graded junction and no justification whatsoever for the lower limit. The speed limit increases back to 60 as it approaches the next roundabout. At first this seems incomprehensible when you should be slowing for the roundabout. A map reveals that the limit changes simply because of the county boundary — road safety has nothing to do with it.

 
Elsewhere on the ABD website:

External Links:

Media:
CET = Coventry Evening Telegraph

Top  ABD Home Page    Other Local Areas   Join   Contact