Thread: Speeding On The M5 & M7

I think the NRMA would have made a song and dance if they were in general use.

Ron

Originally Posted by p38arover

Baz, from where did the story come?

It appears to be a hoax and has done the rounds of a lot of Aussie car fora.

See this from the M7 website:



Ron

Work Email, originally sent from Parramatta council.

From M7 website: http://www.westlinkm7.com.au/news-Detail.asp?NewsID=80

Media Westlink Dismisses Hoax Email
19/7/2007

Westlink M7 has dismissed a hoax email currently circulating that claims that the motorway has implemented a secret speed fine based on the time a vehicle enters and exits the motorway.

Rachel Johnson, General Manager of Westlink M7, said that the email was a hoax and that no secret speed enforcement system operates on the Westlink M7.

Westlink supports safe driving and urges all motorists to comply with posted speed limits.

“However, the secret speed fine system detailed in the hoax email does not exist,” Ms Johnson said.

“Speed limits are enforced on the Westlink M7 through the normal policing measures that operate on all NSW roads.”

“Westlink meets regularly with the NSW Highway Patrol.”

Westlink has installed signs that remind motorists that speed cameras are used in NSW.

These are the standard speed camera signs seen on roads across the state and do not mean that any new or secret speed system operates on the Westlink M7.

Ron

Originally Posted by p38arover

From M7 website: http://www.westlinkm7.com.au/news-Detail.asp?NewsID=80



Ron

Yeah, and men in black don't exist either .

I'm emailing this to work now.

Originally Posted by vnx205

When they were installed on the Hume Highway at Gundagai, the official explanantion was that they were there to monitor heavy vehicle speeds and hours between breaks.
The story was that they were set to ignore anything smaller than little trucks and were then able to focus on the number plate which is an area of high contrast.
There always were suspicions among the more paranoid that they would be used on all vehicles one day.

I thought they also got a shot of the actual driver so they could check if more than one driver was being used in a vehicle or not.

It's not possible for these heavy vehicle cameras to detect speeding cars. Over a long distance (say 500km) if a car is doing 130km/h all the way vs 100km/h it makes up about an hour on the journey. Once you factor in corners, a rest/food/refuel stop and traffic and towns and roadworks you pretty quickly remove any risk of being able to detect a breach in speed limit.

The point-to-point systen has to assume that a vehicle is only actually "speeding" if it gets between the traps faster than if it was doing the exact posted speed limit all the way (which is possible in theory but unlikely in practice). Even then it can't ever work out where the breach occurred and hence what the penalty should be.

Since there are not yet any laws governing private drivers and rest breaks, these cameras can only focus on heavy vehicles.

Originally Posted by spudboy

You need to fit some "James Bond" rotating number plates!

Go through the first camera with one plate, then flick to the 2nd plate for the exit camera....

Cool stuff and I'll have the DB5 as well
and the ejector seat, machine guns behind the front indicators, anti missile screen and the oil dropper (was the DB5 made by LandRover?)
and the axle extensions...perfect!

GQ

The technology is already in place in a lot of areas. If you drive from the NSW border to the North side of Brissy using the highways your car is under cameras the whole way. The cameras can zoom to rego plate level. Expect speed to become a big political hot potato over the next few years. I dont know if you saw the paper the other day. 210 dead in 210 days on Qld roads this year. 18% of fatals are bike riders who make up around 1% of road users etc. etc.