New safety cameras installed at junctions to cut road deaths

NEW generation safety cameras have been installed at junctions in Cheshire in a bid to reduce the number and severity of collisions in the county.
The roadside cameras detect vehicles that go through red lights as well as those that break the speed limit at junctions.
Speeding can have fatal consequences – driving at an unsafe speed has been shown to be a contributory factor in nearly a quarter of road deaths.
Forty one people died on Cheshire’s roads last year – more than twice as many as in 2017 and this year there has already been several fatal collisions.
Junctions represent particular dangers for motorists and pedestrians and Cheshire Road Safety Group (CRSG) hopes their new cameras will lead to a reduction in the number of both fatal and non-fatal collisions.
Brian Rogers, CRSG implementation manager, said: “Far too many people have died and been seriously injured as a result of collisions on Cheshire roads in recent times.
“Cheshire Road Safety Group was set up in April 2011 to reduce the number of people killed or injured on the county’s roads by encouraging greater compliance of speed limits through the operation and maintenance of speed and safety cameras.”
Police, the fire and rescue service, Warrington Borough Council and the other councils across the county are supporting CRSG in investing in new technologies and innovation to make roads safer.
“Junctions in which vehicles and pedestrians come to a road from different directions are particularly dangerous and it is vital that motorists travel at an appropriate speed, one which enables them to stop safely should the colour of traffic lights change or a pedestrian step into the road.
“We hope that the new generation cameras will deter motorists from speeding and going through red lights at junctions and therefore reduce the number and severity of collisions.”
David Keane, Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire, said: “With an increased number of serious incidents and fatalities on our roads in recent times, these cameras are needed more than ever. Law abiding drivers often report to me their shock and frustration at the number of drivers who jump red lights and break the speed limit, selfishly gambling with other people’s lives as well as their own.
“One death is too many and I hope that the new cameras will lead to more motorists adhering to the speed limits and driving responsibly, for both their own safety and the safety of others.
“It is important that people across Cheshire support efforts to reduce the amount of collisions in the county as all drivers and riders have a part to play in making our roads safer.”
If prosecuted for speeding, the minimum penalty is a £100 fine and three penalty points A court may issue higher fines and disqualify a person from driving, depending on the circumstances.