Speed cameras to go live on busy main road in Coventry

Equipment has been installed on a number of lamp columns



Average speed cameras are set to go live on a busy road in Coventry over the coming weeks. Equipment has been installed on lamp columns along Tamworth Road which will be able to measure the average speed of motorists.

The cameras will register the average speed of drivers at different points on the road. Part of the next Average Speed Enforcement programme on main routes, the cameras have been installed by the city council and are supported by West Midlands Police.

Over a three-year period, 13 personal injury collisions, including one fatality and two resulting in serious injury, were recorded on this stretch of road.

Cllr Patricia Hetherton, Cabinet Member for City Services, said: "We have been running initial checks on the equipment and have been letting motorists know that the cameras will soon be live. Although West Midlands Police will be enforcing the limits we hope the fact the cameras are in place will be a warning to drivers.

"Most people respect speed limits, but there have been examples were irresponsible motorists have ignored these limits resulting in avoidable collisions that have affected many people." Average Speed Cameras record the registration of a car and calculate its speed by measuring the time taken to travel between set points.

They are seen as an effective way of reducing speed as they can cover a longer stretch of road compared to fixed point cameras. The council is responsible for setting speed limits in the city and works closely with WMP which enforces them.

Simon Foster, Police and Crime Commissioner for the West Midlands, said: "We pledged to improve road safety and do all we could to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads. That is why I am pleased that, over recent years, we have continued the roll out of the cameras.

"We have helped to get these cameras installed and look forward to more across the West Midlands. These cameras are not being put in place to raise money.

"They will cover the costs to West Midlands Police for enforcement. The cameras are in place to keep people safe and to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads."

Simon Foster, Police and Crime Commissioner for the West Midlands, said: "These cameras are not being put in place to raise money."