Safe Speed Forums

I *think* I may have been flashed by the camera at Ings on the A591 last night. However, I'm not certain if it was my car that set the camera off.

There was a taxi in front of me and nothing behind me. However the taxi was a good 60m or so in front so I dont think it was that which set off the camera. The flash came from a camera on the opposite side of the road and was in front of me! I was driving south towards the M6, the flash was from the northbound side of the road. I was under the (perhaps misguided) impression that cameras were not allowed to flash you in your face for obvious reasons! Maybe a vehicle travelling in the opposite direction triggered the flash - but I dont remember seeing any such vehicle. Therefore, I think it may well have been my car that triggered the flash.

I cannot be certain of the exact speed that I was doing at the time as I didn't glance at my speedo. Due to it being pitch black and there being heavy rain I was concentrating hard on the road and traffic in front of me. It's possible that I was going over 40mph but if I was then it wouldn't have been much over it. Driving in the 60mph zone preceding Ings I was only doing 45-50mph anyway. (As an aside, I really dont understand how you can have a 40mph zone in a wide straight section of country road and a 60mph zone a mile or two away where the road is twisty, much narrower and far more dangerous!)

Anyway, the main point of my post is that regardless of what triggered the camera, I am very angry at being flashed in the face by a high-intensity bulb at midnight. Bear in mind how dark it is at night on this road (no street illumination) that the contrast between the background and the flash is blinding... and that is exactly what happened!!!

After the flash hit me full in the face I couldn't see properly and was forced to pull into the verge while trying to guess where the verge was! I was unable to see much for about 2 minutes and not until 5 mins after the flash occured did I feel confident enough to drive off again. Thank God there wasn't any traffic behind me as there could easily have been an accident. Not to mention the possibility of a head-on collision if I had strayed to the other side of the road due to being blinded! I still had dots in front of my eyes when I got home and went to bed!

I want to write an official complaint about this dangerous camera. It's an accident waiting to happen. The thing is, who do I write to for it to have the most benefit? The Cumbrian police? The Council? The Home Office? I have the impression that writing to the CSCP will be absoultely pointless as it is self-evident that they do not have true road safety at heart.

Does anyone have any suggestions or experience in such things?

Cheers,
Martin

One for Ernest ...

[ducks and waits for the missiles]

_________________
Malcolm W.
The views expressed in this post are personal opinions and do not represent the views of Safespeed.

They seem to have a few problems with flashing cameras up in Ernest's district .

http://www.safespeed.org.uk/forum/viewt ... 8358#88358

_________________
Useless laws weaken necessary laws.

Hi Basil, and to Safespeed.
Sorry it was due to the antics of the flirty flasher at Ings! I hope you'll stay and add your voice to the discussions here!

I would relax a bit... if you have read the link, you'll see it has a history of dodgy flashing!
Firstly, the camera is triggered by a vehicle passing over a loop buried in the ground - once you pass that loop, you will not be detected by the yellow boxes. The loop on YOUR side of the road, cannot set off the flash facing you.
Watch out for the Talivan though, which uses a dubious bit of kit http://www.bbc.co.uk/london/content/articles/2005/09/07/insideout_speedgun_feature.shtml , and sits at either end of Ings limit, in an attempt to double their takings.
An average of 18 motorists a day are getting pinged, so if you decide to complain, then they will fight to keep their nice little earner!

Funnily enough, a man was in my shop today who works in a hotel in Windermere, but lives in Kendal and travels home at night, and he complained of exactly the same effect - dazzled by the flash facing him. I have his details, so if you PM me or use the email in my profile, I'll put you in contact - you might find he is keen to put a stop to it - it's happened to him twice!

I also know the owner of the adjacent guest house is unhappy about the flashes shining into his rooms at night!
I think you might do well to launch an official complaint, or at the very least, approach the Westmorland Gazette, and see if they would canvass for other "victims".

_________________
Time to take responsibility for our actions.. and don't be afraid of speaking out!