New cameras to put the brakes on speeding motorists

SINGAPORE — Slamming the brakes upon spotting a speed camera or traffic policeman may no longer save an errant driver from getting a ticket. 

Following a trial in 2013, new cameras that record the time a vehicle takes to travel between two points will be installed along Tanah Merah Coast Road in the first quarter of next year.

This allows for the system to compute the average speed of a vehicle within an enforcement zone, unlike the spot speed cameras that have been used here since 1992. 

The move, announced by the Traffic Police (TP) on Wednesday as it released annual statistics, comes as the speeding situation improved last year. The number of accidents involving speeding fell by 10.4 per cent to 1,081 cases, while the number of these killing someone fell from 48 to 40, continuing a downward trend from 2014.

Frequented by heavy vehicles and cyclists, the 5km Tanah Merah Coast Road, which has a speed limit of 70kmh, was picked because of its susceptibility to speeding and illegal racing.
“It is a long and straight road … And there will be a lot of construction coming up. This is a road we are very much concerned (about) … Heavy vehicles mixed with cyclists is not a very good recipe for safety,” said TP Commander, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police Sam Tee.

To be mounted on two gantry-like structures at the entry and exit zones, the new point-to-point average speed cameras will be able to distinguish violations by normal vehicles from heavy vehicles, which are typically subject to reduced speed limits.

The TP has not identified other locations where the cameras may be deployed, but said it will assess roads based on their accident risk.

Other safety cameras will also be set up along the stretch to catch errant drivers who try to abuse the system, such as by going at radically high and low speeds within the stretch, said SAC Tee.

Singapore Road Safety Council chairman Bernard Tay believes the new cameras will help shape the behaviour of drivers, as they will be mindful of keeping within the speed limit regularly and frequently.

He suggsted Lim Chu Kang and Punggol as possible sites for such cameras to be deployed, noting these are hotspots for illegal racing and serious accidents.

Average speed cameras have been deployed to much success in the Netherlands. Collisions and fatalities due to speeding fell by 47 per cent and 25 per cent respectively, after a site was set up in Rotterdam. In Amsterdam, the proportion of vehicles exceeding the speed limit reportedly fell by 90 per cent.

In Scotland, road fatalities across zones governed by average speed cameras went down by 50 per cent.

Some motorists, however, are skeptical about their efficacy in stamping out speed demons. 

Housewife Liza Craft, for instance, said errant motorists will abide by the rules only within the zone, especially when they are aware of where the cameras are.

“The only way for it to be effective is if you don’t pre-empt the drivers. Otherwise, people will just slow down when the cameras are approaching, whether they are fixed at one point or over the zone,” said the 37-year-old, who is on the road daily, running errands and ferrying her three kids to and from school.

Among new measures introduced in recent years to deter speedsters include portable speed laser cameras, which are battery operated and can be deployed within a week. 

Digital cameras were also introduced in 2014 to catch those who beat the red light.