Vic govt launches speed camera review

The Victorian Government has flagged a major review of its speed camera network, which the state's deputy premier says has been sparked by a lack of confidence in the system.

(Sydney 500 speed cameras image by
Jon Ovington, CC BY-SA 2.0)

"Victorians need to have confidence that the state's traffic camera network is accurate and has proper oversight," said Peter Ryan, Victorian deputy premier and minister for Police and Emergency Services.

The review will see the Victorian auditor-general take a detailed look into the technology behind the state's speed and red light camera system and the way they are maintained and assessed.

The Victorian Government will also publish a weekly list of mobile speed camera locations by street and suburb, and launch a new website as a result of the review program.

The website, set for an Easter launch, will host information relating to the camera systems including location maps, infringement and operational information as well as statistics on the highest earning cameras in the state.

The state government has also appointed its first Road Safety Camera commissioner, whose mandate includes selecting speed camera locations, technologies and investigations.

"All of these functions will serve to restore public confidence in the traffic camera system, which plays such a vital role in preventing death and serious injury on our roads," Ryan said.

The review comes less than six months after Victoria Police shut down five point-to-point speed cameras supplied by Redflex, after a clock fault caused fines to be issued in error.

The error saw nine incorrect infringements out of a total of 68,000 fines issued over the four years the cameras had been in operation.