Safe Speed Forums

Two cameras have appeared on the northbound A6 Buxton Road in Hazel Grove, Stockport, in what was until recently a 40 area, but now reduced to a ridiculous 30. (There are houses on one side, but they are set back behind a service road.)

The first camera as you approach from the south is apparently a Crown "Gatso Smart Pole", like a Gatso but with the Crown logo, and a rather different shape. This one is painted yellow. As yet there are no calibration lines. However just past it there is what appears to be a rear facing Crown "Redflex smart pole", angled at about 45 degrees to the traffic. This one is battleship grey - as if they were hoping people would only notice the first one (or am I being cynical? ).

I can understand what the first one is for, although not the logic behind it. But what is the second one for? I understand from a thread in a local forum that another one has been put in about two miles further north (next to an existing Gatso at Stockport Grammar School). There's been speculation that they will work in tandem as average speed cameras, although if so it's a pretty daft idea as the chance of averaging over 30 on that stretch of the A6 is virtually zero except in the middle of the night.

Can anybody shed any light on what the second camera is for?

I wish I'd had my camera with me now, but no doubt PeterE will add some photos in due course.

Links:

http://www.crown-international.co.uk/ga ... _pole.html
http://www.crown-international.co.uk/re ... _pole.html

_________________
Brian

Sounds odd - I'll try to take a look over the next few days. Thanks for alerting us to this. I can't see them being used as average speed cameras due to the numerous intervening traffic lights.

After a lull we do seem to have been seeing a number of new cameras installed recently - I don't think I mentioned on here the Redspeed average speed cameras that have appeared on the A6104 Victoria Avenue in North Manchester.

Similar cameras have also now been installed on the famous A537 Cat & Fiddle road

_________________
"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

That would be the Victoria Avenue where I was done many years ago by a Gatso. Why this policy of reducing the speed limit to an inappropriately low value, then going to town on enforcement?

_________________
Brian

These are the new Crown International GATSO's there is also one southpound about 100yard north on A6. Pretty sure its like a normal radar GATSO in a different box, the second grey pole is just an additional flash unit which is cropping up on quite a few GATSO's now, think its to make the second photo brighter.

Photos :

Ah yes, just spotted those on the A6 to the north of the town centre

It's the stretch where this supposedly reversible one used to be:



The one referred to by nedsram is about 5 miles to the south, south of Hazel Grove. I wonder if there's a southbound one there too.

Ta for taking some photos and saving me the trouble

_________________
"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed

The additional pole is similar to the one fitted to Gatso's -and said by Warks county to be for that purpose ( posted their reply to my FOI ON THIS -http://www.safespeed.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=21832&start=100)

_________________
lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

I believe the second flash may be to combat products such as this one:

http://www.beatthecamera.com/

Once the camera and flash are seperated there will be no bright flash reflection and hecnce your number plate will be completely visible.

One of our resident cameraphiles quite often spouts more BS than comes out of the rear of Daisy( yer average friesian) , but on this subject I would tend to believe him when he says that these sprays just don't work .

_________________
lets bring sanity back to speed limits.
Drivers are like donkeys -they respond best to a carrot, not a stick .Road safety experts are like Asses - best kept covered up ,or sat on

They certainly wouldn't admit it worked at all even if it sometimes worked.

Going digital will make the effect of the flashback more difficult to see through. Film is generally very tolerant of over exposure digital is not.