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Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

bbc.com

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Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#31

Post by afrisch »

seszett wrote: post #11
TomMarius wrote: post #2

"Some protesters feel speed cameras are solely a revenue-generating measure which takes money from the poor." This is also the case in Central and Eastern Europe. EDIT: Please read what I cited properly. The citation includes the "Some protesters feel ..." part, which is what I meant - that many people in central and eastern Europe feel the same, not that I feel they're right (what I think is irrelevant).

Yes, many people think that but for my part, I have really noticed a big decrease in speeding since these fixed speed cameras have been put into place, in the last 15 years or so. It was not unusual to have people drive 150 km/h or so on the 110 speedways I was taking then, or 110 on the 90 countryside roads. Nowadays it seems like only few people break speed limits by such margins. In Belgium however (where I live n…

> and lose at least 2 points from any speeding

(Nitpicking: actually only one point if driving less then 20 km/h above the limit.)

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#32

Post by naz »

gambiting wrote: post #16
zuppy wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you got it wrong: the rich will pay, but that amount means nothing to them.

That's where the penalty points come in - you can't pay your way out of losing your licence once you get enough of them. The fine might be meaningless but having to stop driving for 12 months is not.

Penalty points also disproportionately affect the poor, who are more likely to depend on their driving license for their income

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#34

Post by atoav »

TomMarius wrote: post #2

"Some protesters feel speed cameras are solely a revenue-generating measure which takes money from the poor." This is also the case in Central and Eastern Europe. EDIT: Please read what I cited properly. The citation includes the "Some protesters feel ..." part, which is what I meant - that many people in central and eastern Europe feel the same, not that I feel they're right (what I think is irrelevant).

I lived near one of the major crossroads in one of the biggest German cities. The speed camera they put up made a change between waking up 4 times at night because of illegal street races and beeing able to sleep uninterrupted till the lorries start to drive in the early morning.

I am not saying that this isn't a tool to generate revenue, but it certainly can make a difference for some of the people living there.

However the weirdest thing is, when a street feels like you can drive 80km/h but you have to go 30km/h "just because". People don't like that. You shouldn't just put up signs and speed cameras on a perfectly fine street. You have to alter the street too. Make it narrower, etc. People will then drive slow without problems.

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#35

Post by chrisper »

eastendguy wrote: post #14

Why the hate for speed cameras? I love speed cameras because they make the roads safer for everyone. (And yes, once in a while I get a ticket as well, which is always a good reminder to drive safely.)

They would make the roads safer if they weren't used so often as money machines. Do they stand at schools? Nope. They stand at the bottom of the hill at the exit of a town.

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#36

Post by merb »

goldenkey wrote: post #4

Yellow vests were chosen as a symbol because, since 2008, a law had required all French motorists to have high-visibility vests in their vehicles when driving. As a result, reflective vests had become widely available, inexpensive, and recognisable. [1] Obligatory referenced video of the boxer vs police: https://youtu.be/iUw37-eNSxg [1] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_vests_movement

From the video above, his statements are simply false.

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#37

Post by hrktb »

gambiting wrote: post #7
TomMarius wrote: post #2

"Some protesters feel speed cameras are solely a revenue-generating measure which takes money from the poor." This is also the case in Central and Eastern Europe. EDIT: Please read what I cited properly. The citation includes the "Some protesters feel ..." part, which is what I meant - that many people in central and eastern Europe feel the same, not that I feel they're right (what I think is irrelevant).

I have very mixed feelings about this. I have been caught by a money-making camera myself(middle of a forest in rural Poland, far away from any houses, and yet it was still a "built-up" area with speed limit of 50km/h, because technically there wasn't a sign ending it after leaving the last town few km back), but on the other hand, there's so many people speeding in cities, frequently doing 100km/h or above on very b…

yes, it's a mixed bag.

In some places the cameras are signaled up to 500m before, and are very visible with yellow reflective stripes. There is often one at the entrance of towns to force drivers to adapt their speeds, and it works.

Then some are clearly placed with malice, it really depends.

> Unless someone can prove a connection that someone poor is more likely to speed, then I don't see how that's true.

I think an issue would be that poor people will drive more. Middle class population will tend to be more urban and rely on public transportation for day to day use, even if they still own a car and may do a few trips during the week.

People in remote areas will be more at the extreme: crazy rich or pretty poor, and the poor in these area will have to drive everywhere to get almost anything, thus being more subject to speed traps. (anecdotaly almost everyone speeds way over the limit, some big highway feel like the autobahn sometimes)

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#38

Post by dijit »

eastendguy wrote: post #14

Why the hate for speed cameras? I love speed cameras because they make the roads safer for everyone. (And yes, once in a while I get a ticket as well, which is always a good reminder to drive safely.)

Technically not true. There are accidents caused by those who slow unexpectedly because they only just realised there's a speed-trap.

It adds an element of unpredictability to the road.

This almost completely offsets any positive safety gain.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3861844/

Which makes me think it's a cash-grab.

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#39

Post by arkh »

Bayart wrote: post #27
eastendguy wrote: post #14

Why the hate for speed cameras? I love speed cameras because they make the roads safer for everyone. (And yes, once in a while I get a ticket as well, which is always a good reminder to drive safely.)

They're not located at areas where lower speeds would improve safety, they're located at areas where they make the most money. At least that's how people feel. I'm personally generally dubious on speed limit based policies.

The Montpellier area : 2x3 ways limited to 110km/h + 2x3 ways limited to 90 km/h. Road in perfect state. So let's put an average speed radar system.

Re: Yellow vests knock out 60% of all speed cameras in France

#40

Post by sschueller »

xxs wrote: post #17
D_Guidi wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

the poor simply can respect the rules like the rich, right?

Sweden and Finland have fines based on the annual income.[0] [0]: https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-31709454

In Switzerland as well but only for highway with more then 25 Km/h over. [1]

[1] https://rp-online.de/panorama/ausland/raser-drohen-782000-eu...

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