Councillors in Greater Manchester want more freedom to place speed cameras where they think they are necessary, rather than wait for a required number of serious crashes to happen before they are allowed to act.

At the moment, according to safespeed.org, cameras can be placed where there least four people killed or seriously injured per kilometre in last three calendar years and that causation factors indicate that speeding was a contributory factor.

However the Manchester Evening News quotes Oldham Councillor Howard Sykes telling the Bee Network Committee, “We have no qualms about sticking hundreds of cameras up for the Clean Air Zone. I would like to see hundreds of cameras stuck up to catch speeders because catching speeders saves lives, it’s as simple as that. It really is hard to get a speed camera and I am sure every elected member around this table can talk about a street or a place on their patch where they need one, but can’t make the criteria because they have not had enough serious injuries or deaths.

“Can we review the criteria for cameras because I just think the bar is far too high.”

Stockport Councillor David Meller added: “It does seem perverse that this has to be done in a reactive way rather than a proactive way.

“As in we have to react to the fact people have been killed leads to putting up a camera, when in my mind it should be the other way around.”

Greater Manchester is currently working with Jenoptik on upgrading spot speed cameras across the region and they have added new average speed cameras too.

(Picture – Jenoptik)