New SPECS cameras on the M4 - how can we alert to these?

gstenson

A lot of worried people at my office are sending these warnings...any idea if we can add them to the database?

New electronic signs on the M4 were switched on today, Tuesday 21 October. The bad news is that they are rigged with the SPECS speed cameras.

SPECS is a computer-camera based system. As you go past the sign a digital camera reads your number plate. When you go past the next sign your number plate is read again. The computer 'knows' how far apart the signs are so it can work out your average speed between the two, or three or four.

The system is fully automatic and will issue a ticket without any form of human intervention. It does this for every single vehicle that passes. You will not know you've been caught as the cameras don't flash.

They work 24/7, 365 days a year, and theoretically, there's absolutely no limit on the number of tickets that the system can issue.

The whole section of the M4 between Theale (J12) and Membury Services (between J14 and J15) is wired, both ways. The system is set to trigger a ticket at 78 mph. Radar detectors will be of no use as SPECS is entirely passive, there is no radar or laser beam to detect.

gstenson · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2003 12:45 pm Post subject:

Actually someone else has posted this..

http://www.highways.gov.uk/roads/projects/ms4/index.htm

In the Benefits section you will see...

"The new motorway signs have been designed to accommodate closed circuit television cameras. These cameras will be used by the Highways Agency to assess the effectiveness of the new signs by monitoring traffic flow and movement patterns in response to the driver information messages set on the signs. Real-time images from these cameras will also be available to Thames Valley Police at their motorway control office, offering additional aid to locating and managing incidents on the motorway more swiftly and helping to set the new signs more promptly and accurately. The cameras will not be used for speed enforcement."

So they may not be used for speed enforcement - but it does raise the question of these types of cameras - I know they are in Nottingham as well.

Graham

Dave · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2003 1:05 pm Post subject:

You will also see a lot of SPECS based cameras covering the length of the M27 across the south, but these are not used for traffic enforcement (aka speeding), just more for traffic management, but they may be enabled at some point in the near future.

longwori · Posted: Wed Oct 22, 2003 4:04 pm Post subject:

The latest version of CheckPOInt has the capability to warn of the Specs cameras.

See my posting:-

http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=4112

Although I believe the speed camera database we are using doesnt differentiate between normal speed cameras and average speed cameras.

Ian.[/url]

Oldie · Posted: Wed Nov 03, 2004 4:54 pm Post subject:

There has been a separate file for SPECS cameras in the last two releases of the safety camera database. So if you identify them for us then they can be added to the file.

Also CheckPOInt 2 has always been able to identify different type of POI as it is possible to associate a different .WAV file with the detection. Just record yourself saying SPECS and use that.

Richard

	PocketGPS
	Web