Camera Data

Collision and speed data on individual sites has always been made available by the Partnership on request, where the cost of collation has not been excessive.

The stated intention is to make data available for local sites in one place. To assist with this goal the Partnership aims to make site specific data available when the user clicks on each site on the “camera watch” map.

Although the Minister stressed that the Government was committed to reducing the bureaucratic and administrative burden on local authorities, and has emphasised the information is based on data which is readily available, it requires a diversion of resources from operational activity to compile and verify the data from several agencies and sources. This will be done progressively on a site by site basis.

The Minister also requires local authorities that provide financial support for enforcement, to publish their deployment strategy, which is a Partnership wide approach. This is shown below.

Devon and Cornwall Constabulary are responsible for offence data which, under public interest test, we do not normally release. It has been previously deemed this would be likely to compromise road safety. The Minister is writing to the Association of Chief Police Officers separately on this matter. In the interim we are investigating whether information can be made available to the public which will provide useful information without compromising road safety.

Deployment Policy

Safety camera interventions will be considered at sites / locations with injury collisions which have been identified by cluster, or route analysis.

Potential safety camera sites will be prioritised on an individual highway authority basis rather than through a predefined threshold injury rate for action. The decision making process will document that camera enforcement is considered an appropriate solution to the problem at the time. The camera technology used will be a decision made by the partners, there will be occasions where mobile detection will be used tactically to augment static camera technology.

Deployment may be long term or tactical and by agreement between highway authority and Police. This might include the use of safety cameras as an interim measure where a longer term high cost scheme such as a bypass or major traffic calming is the ultimate goal.

Camera enforcement techniques will be considered in response to community concerns. In some cases the needs will be met by local policing or community Speedwatch. Where site assessment shows this approach to be unsuitable, or the speed limit or average recorded speeds are more than 40 mph (in a 30 limit), safety camera enforcement can be considered.

Community concern sites will be assessed and agreed between the relevant highway authority and Police. Injury collision reduction work will take priority over these deployments.

Where risk analysis work (for example safety audit activity) has identified a requirement for  mitigation through speed enforcement, new sites should be identified to the Partnership as a whole to consider any on going commitments this may imply between the partners.

The on going need for enforcement will be subject to regular review between partners. The prioritisation of enforcement activity levels at sites will be agreed between the appropriate highway authority and the project team.

In the future partners may adopt a “random road watch programme”, but the benefits of specific camera signing in deterring speeding mean the current default policy is to deploy with camera warning signs where possible.

Unmarked operations can be agreed between partners where there are specific operational needs for doing this.