Are these traffic cams?

Originally posted by Chorlton
Then I feel you must be missing out on something

I certainly have cursed not driving on several occasions, but the inconvenience is of little consequence relative to the money I've saved and the pollution I haven't put into the environment.

Nope I wasnt racing at all. It was 11.00PM and I wanted to try out the V8 engine we had spent the last week putting in a friends car.
(I had a word with Fenella though who said it was OK)

Well I guess the speed limit doesn't apply after 11 then...come now Chorlton....you succumb to your desire for speed. I can understand that, but if you want to see what you can do in a car, would it not just be wiser to do it on a track?

...and don't listen to Fenella, she has a cold evil heart.

In the middle of nowhere? We are told they are for safety but to place them in the middle of nowhere they are simply revenue gathering.

Speeding is speeding, it matters not where it is or how busy it is.

Originally posted by Koka
Speeding is speeding, it matters not where it is or how busy it is.

Thats why in the states we have Police Officers, each with their own brain, handing out tickets instead of machines with little regard to the actual PURPOSE of the law. Thats something you don't hear much about from people like yourself who only wish to argue the letter of law and not its purpose.

I was doing over 70mph (probably about 75) in a 50mph zone once coming home from work at 3:00 in the morning. The police officer saw me "fly by" (his words) but couldn't get a radar reading. It took him two miles to catch up to me and pull me over and he was doing 90 (again based on what he said.)

I didn't get a ticket. Why?
1) I was quite literally the only person on the road
2) I was courteous when he pulled me over ("Good evening officer.")
3) I knew exactly how fast I was going ("About 73, officer.")

None of these things excuse the fact that I was going way over the speed limit and probably could have had my license suspended. The officer reasoned that I was a first-time offender going home after working a 12 hour shift on a desolate road that I had driven on every day for 3 years. He figured that I was little or no threat to anyone else and that my own safety was not much compromised since I was fully aware of my speed and my surroundings.

In the end, he gave me a warning and told me to "Keep it down." and then added "Get home safely." I thanked him and continued at a more normal pace (just under 60mph.) That is how public service is handled when the citizenry aren't viewed solely as a potential revenue source and when cops understand the PURPOSE behind speed limits is safety first and limitations second.

Jon

[edit on 8.5.2007 by Voxel]

Originally posted by Voxel
Thats something you don't hear much about from people like yourself who only wish to argue the letter of law and not its purpose.

I would debate the merits of any law, thats what "people like me" do.

I also disagree with many laws and have been active in protesting against such laws.

If the general populous could be trusted speed limits would most likely be raised, unfortunately raise 50 to 70 you end up with people doing 90 a 100, no self restraint, they have to be monitored because when they think they aren't being watched they can't resist, a bit like those who cannot work unsupervised.

The cop was kind enough to let you off because you were courteous and new that people like you..... ....break the speed limit all the time, I feel his time could be better spent though.

[edit on 5-8-2007 by Koka]

Well all this talk of speeding really makes me want to tell everyone about the time I went 80 mph on a dual carriage way (speed limit 70mph). Well WoooHooo I hear you all say.

That was on my full motorcycle license test and my examiner (following in a car) said I did exactly the correct thing as some numpty accelerated as I over took him as we both were overtaking slower trucks. I had following traffic, and being on a bike you keep your little bit of road the way you like it (free of T's in cars)

Would a speed camera of given me that little piece of logical (let alone safety minded) thinking - I think not.

Oh also I DO NOT CONDONE SPEEDING FOR FUN - I simply accept it is fun and move on ~ a little quicker than absolutely necessary

As promised, here are new photos of the cams or whatnot in question.

This one shows one of the hanging cameras, and those are all over this area. The ones tilted out to the street look like plain old spotlights to me. i184.photobucket.com...

Farther down the pole, these three also look like spotlights. There seems to be a lot of lighting going on here. i184.photobucket.com...

Here are the dual units that I'm still unsure about. Are they lights too?? Or does radar look like this? i184.photobucket.com...

Here's a closeup of them. i184.photobucket.com...

Originally posted by yuefo
I think I get what he means now--the partnerships are losing revenue from the loss of ticketing itself, not replacement of the Gatsos.

This scheme ended on March 31 2007 and cameras are now controlled locally - with money from central funds available to finance local safety schemes and education programmes.

I don't know whether this is an unfortunate choice of words or whether "scheme" doesn't have the the same connotation in Britain as it does here.

Scheme, hahahaha! Faux-pax! Suckas. Good find,yuefo, very amusing. I think the pictures are of speed cameras for sure. Revenue for the city, baby.

Originally posted by carnival_of_souls2047
I think the pictures are of speed cameras for sure. Revenue for the city, baby.

So this is what radar looks like? I tried to google a picture of the business end of a radar gun without success.

That is a flash for a red light camera. when you go through a red light at that intersection at night, you will get "flashed". There is probably a pedestal on a median nearby facing the same direction where the camera will be located. There is usually a flash on the camera pedestal as well, but with multi lane roads, or with higher speed roads, sometimes extra flashes are needed closer to the intersection.

Originally posted by IronDogg
That is a flash for a red light camera.

I was thinking it looked like a light. But it's not in an intersection. It's located mid-block. There are cameras hanging down from the same pole however so it does make sense they'd need light. It's surprising that there are at least 4 different types of electronics on the pole.

i184.photobucket.com...