Edinburgh speed camera to be switched off just as new lower 30mph limit is introduced

Roads chiefs are under fire over their “daft” plan to switch off speed cameras on a stretch of road just as they cut the 40mph limit to 30mph.

The Lanark Road speed cameras are to be switched off despite the new 30mph limit

The speed curb on Lanark Road, part of the Spaces for People scheme to make it safer for people to walk and cycle, has been welcomed by residents.

But they say switching off cameras which could enforce the new limit just doesn’t make any sense.

Professor Derryck Reid, who lives on Lanark Road, said: "It's daft. It’s clear people respond to speed cameras on Lanark Road. They're often going at over 40mph until they get close to the camera and then they brake – we see them.

The speed limit is being cut as part of the Spaces for People programme

"The council needs to be monitoring speeds, but there still needs to be a deterrent for drivers who decide to go at more than 30mph. If that doesn’t happen people will just ignore it.”

Prof Reid is chair of South West Edinburgh in Motion, set up by residents and businesses to push for proper consultation on the Spaces for People scheme.

"We have been challenging the council on the safety aspects of the scheme on Lanark Road. The speed limit wasn't reduced until we asked for it to be reduced.

“I really welcome the 30mph coming in. I think it does make things safer but turning off the speed cameras is counter-productive.”

In a letter to another local resident, the council’s Spaces for People team said the operation of safety cameras was reviewed annually. “This was underway when the evolving SfP programme highlighted the forthcoming changes to Lanark Road. As these will significantly revise the road environment here with a reduced speed limit, it was considered the council should support making the sites dormant, to help assess the effectiveness of these changes. However, if the road environment was to change then the site may be re-activated.”

Colinton/Faimilehead Tory councillor Jason Rust said: "It is absolutely unbelievable that the speed cameras are to be turned off simply because the speed limit has been reduced.

"The council is suggesting that it will decide how effective the new measures are by making the cameras dormant. How is this new scheme to be enforced? One couldn't make it up.

"It is utterly bizarre and seems a strange way to supposedly make our roads safe spaces for pedestrians, cyclists and other road users. The council is sending a signal that despite the new road environment all is fine because the limit is being reduced and never mind enforcement.”

A spokesman for Police Scotland’s East Safety Camera Unit said: “Every safety camera site is reviewed annually to ensure that we are correctly targeting our resources towards the greatest risk. As part of our site review process, it was decided that the cameras on Lanark Road would be made dormant due to the low number of offences and collisions recorded at the camera locations.

"This means that this resource can be located at another site where there is greater need and potential to reduce collisions. Over a three-year period, we will assess the impact of making these cameras dormant, through speed surveys, monitoring driver behaviour and collision statistics.”

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