will save lives

BPR

AS 48 new speed cameras are set to be switched on, bringing the total across the county to 117 -- with 18 of the new ones installed on roads in East Lancashire -- inevitable grouses arise from many motorists .

Typically, these are that there are enough cameras already; they are mainly means of collecting easy money in fines from drivers going only a few miles an hour over the limit; and that the police should be chasing 'real criminals' instead.

But none of these frequently-heard complaints overrides the stark reality of the reasons for the cameras and the need for them -- that speed kills and in reducing speeding, the cameras reduce deaths and injuries on the roads.

And the proof of this is plain. Since cameras were introduced in Lancashire, accidents on the roads where they have been installed have been cut by more than a third. And ones involving death or serious injury have been slashed by almost two-thirds.

It is also the fact that sites for the new cameras are ones with death and injury rates that demand action. The eight roads in Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale where new cameras will be switched on at the end of the month have seen a total of 175 deaths and injuries in the past three years. How can anyone be complacent about such a toll -- or resentful at action to reduce it?

And while many drivers may feel that being prosecuted for driving only a few miles an hour over the limit is harsh, cutting traffic speed by only such small amounts and bringing it within the legal limits can make a big difference.

For the majority of accidents occur on roads with limits of 30 mph or less -- while a vehicle going at "only" 35 mph is twice as likely to kill someone than one going at 30 mph.

These undeniable facts are the justification for the cameras -- and make the arguments against them wholly unjustified.