SYDNEY—Point-to-point speed cameras will be introduced in NSW, but Roads Minister Michael Daley vows they'll only be used to target trucks, not cars.
They will be installed on 20 stretches of road, mainly in rural and regional areas, covering distances as short as two kilometres and as long as 80km.
The system has been under consideration for some time, with Mr Daley saying heavy vehicles remain over-represented in fatal crashes and speed is all too often the cause.
Heavy vehicles made up about 2.6 per cent of all vehicles on the road, yet were involved in almost 20 per cent of road fatalities, he said.
Mr Daley said a Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) survey of major freight routes in 2005 found 51 per cent of heavy vehicles exceeded the speed limit.
Nearly seven per cent of those exceeded the limit by more than 15km/h, it found.
“There’s no place for cowboys on our roads, and this new technology will catch them out,” Mr Daley said in a statement on Monday.
Point-to-point cameras calculate the time it takes a truck to drive between two points, thus determining if the vehicle was speeding over that stretch of road.
Mr Daley insisted there was no plan to introduce the speed cameras to target cars in the future.
“I have no plans to introduce it for anything other than heavy vehicles,” he told Macquarie Radio.
“Light vehicles are not under the same commercial imperatives that heavy vehicles are.”
Mr Daley dismissed suggestions the point-to-point system was a form of revenue raising, saying it will cost the government $5 million a year to run even after any revenue from fines.
He said the system would require some changes to legislation, and it was hoped that all 20 sites would be operational within two years.
An awareness campaign will be launched to inform truckies about the change.
During an initial two-month period on each stretch of road covered by the cameras, drivers will get a warning letter instead of a fine.
The Australian Truckers Association’s Jill Lewis said there was no excuse for speeding, but the best deterrent was police cars and highway patrol officers on the highway.
Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell said the point-to-point system was welcome, but came as it was revealed the government had downgraded truck safety checks.
Figures revealed last month in documents obtained under freedom of information laws show 82,173 fewer trucks were scrutinised at checking stations last year than in 2007.
“This is a small measure that doesn’t make up for the state government’s failure to ensure that existing truck checking stations are fully operational throughout the year,” Mr O'Farrell said.
He said the point-to-point cameras should be part of a suite of options aimed at lowering truck-related road incidents.
Point-to-Point Camera Locations in NSW
Road Location Distance
- Mount Ousley Road Mount Ousley 6km
- Great Western Hwy Raglan - Meadow Flat 27km
- Hume Hwy Coolac - Gundagai 20km
- Hume Hwy Yass - Coolac 75km
- Mid Western Hwy Bathurst - Blayney 35km
- Monaro Highway Bredbo - Cooma 34km
- New England Hwy Muswellbrook - Aberdeen 11km
- New England Hwy Singleton - Muswellbrook 46km
- Newell Hwy Eumungerie - Gilgandra 27km
- Newell Hwy Peak Hill - Tomingley 17km
- Pacific Hwy Kew - Port Macquarie 21km
- Pacific Hwy Port Macquarie - Kempsey 40km
- Pacific Hwy Nabiac - Taree 24km
- Pacific Hwy Harwood - New Italy 35km
- Federal Hwy Hume Highway - Collector 20km
- Pacific Hwy Woodburn - Wardell 20km
- Mitchell Hwy Molong - Condumbul 28km
- Golden Hwy Sandy Hollow - Merriwa 34km
- Gwydir Hwy Glen Innes - Inverell 60km
- Oxley Hwy Gunnedah - Tamworth 60km
Source: NSW Government
