New speed cameras in Surrey could cut casualties

Surrey is to get five new safety camera sites in the next few months as part of a drive to cut road casualties across the county.

The sites, approved by the Department for Transport (DfT), have been chosen by the Surrey Safety Camera Partnership because they have experienced a high number of casualties in recent years related to excessive speed.

They are:

* Fixed speed - A318 Byfleet Road/Oyster Lane, New Haw, Woking and A232 Cheam Road, Ewell East, Epsom and Ewell.

* Mobile speed sites - A318 New Haw Road, New Haw, Woking; A244 Copsem Lane, Esher, Elmbridge and A307, Portsmouth Road, Thames Ditton, Elmbridge.

These five collision hotspots alone have seen 112 casualties, including 31 people killed or seriously injured, due to road traffic collisions in the past three years,.

Surrey Safety Camera Partnership's Project Manager, Duncan Knox, said, "The casualty figures indicated that we needed to do something to cut the number of collisions at these sites. Providing a fixed camera or mobile enforcement will make a big difference to speeds and make these roads safer for drivers and pedestrians."

Enforcement began on both the A244 Copsem Lane, Esher and the A307, Portsmouth Road, Thames Ditton this week. The other three sites will be operational in the next few months.

The new camera sites will be in addition to the 35 existing "core" safety camera sites in the county consisting of 17 fixed speed sites, 12 red light violation and six mobile zones already managed by the Partnership.

The new sites were selected after they met strict Government criteria showing they have a poor accident record and surveys confirmed excessive speeds. The sites are analysed by road safety engineers and Surrey Police to check if any other measures could be used before using a safety camera.

All sites will be well-signed and conform to minimum visibility distances.

The Partnership is aiming to continue the success it had last year in cutting casualties in the county. In the first year of enforcement after it took over the operation and maintenance of the cameras in Surrey it achieved a 34% reduction in collisions at its 17 fixed cameras sites and a 71% reduction in collisions involving death or serious injury.