Speeding fines - a sorry tale of administration

There are two units there – the flash unit and the bigger box. It is different to the ones on the Parkway – they clearly have the strips cut into the road. The two on the Monaro don’t seem to have anything cut into the road – hence my assumption that they are a radar/laser device.

Either way – anyone know who or what company calibrates them?

JC said :

The sensor type will just have the camera unit and flash unit. If there is no seperate box it isn’t radar. As for laser I don’t think we have any fixed laser speed cameras in the ACT, just the mobile vans.

I helped set up a trial doppler radar system in Victoria 3 years ago. It had a large box with a camera unit and a radar, a separate flash box and a lane-sense radar that was no bigger than 20cm long and 8cm diameter.

I disagree with your assertion that it cannot be radar.

cranky said :

Sorry JC, I think you are wrong.

The camera in question is, I am sure, a laser/radar device. No roadworks were involved with this camera, and its mate near Gull, and the two at the Hindmarsh Drive overpass.

This particular camera is apparently focussed on the far right lane, the one exiting the Monaro and entering the Rose Cottage roundabout. Radar/laser probably means it can cover all three lanes. Feedback from southbound Monaro speedsters could be interesting.

They don’t need major road works to install the sensors and a seperate sensor can be put in for each lane. All they do is use a cutter to cut a grove in the road, put the sensor cable in, wire it back to the camera control unit and fill the groove with a tar type substance.

I don’t travel that way all that often so cannot be 100% sure what this one is, but if it is a radar one, like some used in NSW there will be a radar box mounted off the side of the camera, as well as the flash unit. The sensor type will just have the camera unit and flash unit. If there is no seperate box it isn’t radar. As for laser I don’t think we have any fixed laser speed cameras in the ACT, just the mobile vans.

GPS with speed display on is more accurate than any car speedo I’ve ever had. Car speedos generally read over, so you can push it a bit.

That said, I’m with Spideydog… Hundreds of people go past those cameras at or just over the limit by their speedo daily… If the cameras were out so much, there’d be a flood of complaints.

Hells_Bells74 said :

Would changing your car tyres or wheels size maybe affect your speedo readings?

As far as I am aware, yes it can. Different rims and tyre size from the original manufacturer specs can effect the reading on the Speedo.

Minor changes don’t effect that much though.

BUT, (there is always a but ….) in the eyes of the law, inaccurate speedo’s are not a defence to speeding.

Would changing your car tyres or wheels size maybe affect your speedo readings?

I use the Monaro Highway numerous times daily and travel at the posted speed limit (not 5-10 below) in varying different vehicles and have not been pinged yet by any of the camera’s. I frequently see people fly past me, brake hard for the cameras and then 100m later speed back up and blare off into the distance and I bet they don’t get pinged either.

I am not calling people liars here, but I am skeptical. For those that have been done, when was the last time you had your speedo professionally checked for accuracy ?. People are upset that the camera’s are only checked annually (which I can see their point) but how many of them have had their speedometer checked for accuracy ?? EVER !!

zztopless said :

Would this be the Camera on the Monaro Highway “between Mugga Lane and Isabella drive”?

I got a fine today for 89 in an 80 zone, but I religiously stick to the speed limit there (on the whole Monaro for that matter).

What was the process involved in sending in a request for the calibration certificate? Who did you ring/email/mail to get this?

Bingo – this is the camera that pinged me a few times last year …. and at the time, I always used cruise control set to ’80’. Now I use cruise control set to 75 ….

Sorry JC, I think you are wrong.

The camera in question is, I am sure, a laser/radar device. No roadworks were involved with this camera, and its mate near Gull, and the two at the Hindmarsh Drive overpass.

This particular camera is apparently focussed on the far right lane, the one exiting the Monaro and entering the Rose Cottage roundabout. Radar/laser probably means it can cover all three lanes. Feedback from southbound Monaro speedsters could be interesting.

AG Canberra said :

I reckon there is something dodgy with this camera. I’m hearing too many stories of people that swear they weren’t speeding – yet still get fined…..

Problem is that I am no laser speed checking device calibration expert – anyone know one?

The cameras in the ACT are not laser, so no need to find a laser speed checking expert. Most if not all ‘our’ camera’s use two or more induction sensors embedded in the road surface that trigger when a car passes over them. Speed is calculated by meassuring the time difference between them triggering. Same with the red light camera’s, all of which in the ACT double as speed camera’s.