NSW Govt to install speed camera signs after public backlash over removal

New South Wales is to install more than a thousand speed camera warning signs after the State Government faced a public outcry for previously having them removed.

The new directive follows November 2020’s removal of the signs across the state and a significant jump in low-level speeding offences captured by the devices. Mobile speed cameras are privately operated in NSW, which means the rise in revenue not only benefits the Government but private operators as well.

Along with 1000 permanent roadside signs, an additional 360 digital signs will remind motorists that the units can be found “anywhere, anytime”, according to Transport Minister Andrew Constance.

"[It] is the biggest killer on our roads, with almost 50 per cent of fatalities last year caused by someone travelling at an inappropriate speed," said Constance. He also noted related fatalities were down to 40 per cent.

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Generic warning signs can be found across Australia

In February 2021, five drivers were caught going too fast for every hour of enforcement (meaning for every hour a mobile camera was set up, it caught five drivers). Constance says this figure fell to 3.5 drivers in June, although it’s unclear what caused the drop.

NSW Opposition Leader, Labor’s Chris Minns, called the announcement a "partial backflip", citing the high number of low-level fines handed out in May 2021, which he claims amounted to a revenue of $4 million.

"The data is showing clearly that warning signs work to change driver behaviour and the fact the Government is now putting signs back up is proof of this," Minns said.

NSW road fatalities have risen in 2021, a point not lost on the NRMA’s Peter Khoury. "We’ve got two issues here. The first is that the Government is fining more people in a month than what they were in a year, and the second issue is the road toll this year is worse than it was last year."

This is also against the backdrop of lower traffic volumes as a result of Covid-19 restrictions and an ongoing reluctance of many workers to return to offices.

However, even though the Government has seemingly U-turned on their removal, the signs themselves aren’t warnings of specific active mobile sites, instead just telling motorists there are cameras generally operating in the area.