Lives will be put at risk as a result of government cuts to speed cameras, Britain's top traffic police officer has warned.

Chief Con Mick Giannasi, of Gwent Police, said casualties had almost halved over an eight year period due to the use of speed cameras.

It comes after the government cut £38m from this year's road safety budget.

The Department for Transport has said road safety remains a priority for councils despite speed camera cuts.

The government has also ended central funding for speed cameras - a central plank of its promise to "end the war on the motorist".
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* Speed camera 'nets £1.3m a year'

About 6,000 speed cameras have appeared on Britain's roads since they were introduced in 1992, generating some £100m in fines each year.

Last month it emerged that Oxfordshire County Council will switch off its 72 fixed cameras. The decision was part of moves to save money.

Other local authorities are also considering similar action.

Mr Giannasi, who speaks on road policing for the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "The evidence is that road safety camera partnerships have achieved significant reductions in road casualties over the last decade - there are almost half the number of casualties now that there were eight years ago, and actually there is very clear evidence to show that the public accepts them.
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“Start Quote

We know that cameras are very effective in cutting speeding which is vital for protecting all road users”

End Quote Julie Townsend Brake

"We recognise that we have to save money, we recognise that road safety has to play its part in this, but these cuts in particular are a threat to the future sustainability of the system."

He said he was working with the government to "persuade them that action needs to be taken to protect the system for the future of our road safety".

According to a report in the Times, he has written to ministers warning of a rise in fatal road accidents as councils switch off cameras because they can no longer afford to operate them.

It comes as another police chief openly expressed concerns about road safety.

Cambridgeshire Chief Constable Julie Spence told the Daily Telegraph speeding is "middle class anti-social behaviour".

She said: "People think, 'we should be able to get away with it'. They wouldn't tolerate law-breaking by anybody else but they do it themselves without thinking.

"It all seems ok until something tragic happens, like a child dies because of a road traffic accident."

Fears raised by police chiefs were echoed by Julie Townsend, deputy chief executive of road safety charity Brake, who told the programme a "large scale" removal of speed cameras would be "a devastating blow to road safety".

"We know that cameras are very effective in cutting speeding which is vital for protecting all road users," she said.

A Department for Transport spokeswoman said road safety remained a priority.

She said: "The coalition government is committed to further improving road safety but it is right that local councils decide how best to tackle specific problems in their areas.

"We ended central government funding for new fixed speed cameras because we don't believe we should dictate to councils that they use them as the default solution in reducing accidents."

SOURCE

Since this topic was started in the international section, let's stick to English

Mr Chief Constable Giannasi states that speed camera's cut down in half the number of casualties on the British roads. I dare to contest that: he apparently ignores the important effect of cars becoming much safer over the last decade, and the fact British roads became more and more clogged, leaving less opportunity to kill oneself. He also tends to oversee a little detail: since most of the speed cameras seems to generate a juicy and steady cash flow, apparently many motorists do not get impressed by them, and keep on speeding. That's odd, given mr Giannasi's statement they are the main driver to cut back all these casualties. Why does he not admit the real reason for his appeal? It's all about money... speed cameras provide a source of income beyond imagination. To give up such a golden goose is almost as hard as severing precious body parts.

Most police forces adopt new speeding guidelines
9 April 2011 Last updated at 09:06 GMT

Most police forces in England and Wales have adopted new speeding guidelines that allow motorists to do up to 86mph and avoid points on their licence.

It means drivers can pay to do a speed awareness course instead, if caught at up to 10% above the limit plus 9mph.

At a meeting of the Association of Chief Police Officers in January, it was announced that 37 out of 44 forces had signed up to the new system.

Critics say the rules are a money-making exercise and allow law breaking.
'Educational experience'

Previously, only those travelling at up to 10% above the limit plus 6mph could be offered one of the courses.

But the amendments were agreed by chief constables at a meeting of the Association of Chief Police Officers in January.

For a 30mph zone, the upper limit for a speeding course would be 42mph.

This would rise to 86mph for motorways and other major roads, although the official limit remains the same.
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Acpo said the figure at which a course could be offered was a decision for individual forces, and not all would make it available for higher speeds.

Drivers can only attend one speed awareness course in a three-year period.

Acpo said the increase in courses for drivers had been backed by road safety minister Mike Penning.

"There is evidence to show that if people are sent on educational courses, rather than being punished with a fine and penalty points on their driving licence, they are less likely to reoffend in the future," a spokeswoman said.

"Clearly if someone is breaking the speed limit outside a school when the children are coming out at 3.15pm, it's a no brainer and they would be punished. But if it is 3am and there's no-one on the streets, there is a degree of discretion."
'Important element'

She added: "Over recent years, the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads has fallen significantly, reducing both the toll of personal tragedy and the cost to the public purse.

"This reduction has been achieved through a combination of improved engineering, enforcement and education of which safety cameras are an important element."

At the start of the month, speed cameras across Oxfordshire were switched back on eight months after they were turned off.

Funding was withdrawn for 72 cameras and 89 mobile sites last August as part of budget cuts in the county.

But police said deaths and serious injuries on the area's roads went up following the cameras being switched off.

Money for the cameras to be introduced has come from speed awareness courses and backroom savings.
BBC news

"safety cameras"

Please, cut that crap. Unnecessary breaking has caused more accidents and injuries than where speed cameras have been removed. People familiar with the spots know exactly where to restrain their speeds, and continue further on at their desired speeds, but drivers that are not known with the area seem to show a different behaviour. Despite driving below the speed limit, they tend to break anyway, causing dangerous traffic circumstances. Similar effects show in The Netherlands, the other European country that is plastered with speed cams, and thas has an even bigger dependency of the government from the yields of automated speed watching.