04
Jul
Vandalism of North Yorkshire's first fixed speed camera puts people 'at risk', police warn
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Vandalism of a speed camera in North Yorkshire puts people “at risk”, police have warned.
The county’s first ever fixed speed camera was installed on the A64 Sherburn High Street on Monday (June 30) as part of a three-month trial.
North Yorkshire Police said the move was designed to help slow down motorists and reduce the number of serious and fatal collisions in Sherburn.
However, the speed camera was damaged at around 2am on Tuesday morning (July 1) – just hours into its first day of the trial.
The force said both the camera and the lamp post it was based on were “deliberately vandalised”.
Now, Ben Moseley, assistant chief constable of North Yorkshire Police, has warned that people are being “put at risk” without the camera.
He said:
The purpose of trialling the first fixed speed camera is to reduce the risk of casualties from road traffic collisions. The location on the A64 was chosen due to the high volume of speeding offences that were captured by mobile safety vans which, when working in tandem with fixed cameras, can make a significant contribution towards safety by moderating a driver’s speed in the local area.
In the last six months in this area, 394 vehicles have been captured by mobile vans exceeding the speed limit. Safety vans typically capture 11 speeding offences an hour in Sherburn, while the average across the county is five offences an hour. We have even had a driver in the same area exceeding 60mph in a 30mph zone at 9.30am. The community is being put at risk by irresponsible drivers and the fixed camera is part of a blended enforcement approach, along with safety camera vans, to keep both motorists and pedestrians safe.
A police statement added:
North Yorkshire Police is continuing to appeal for information about the vandalism to the lamp post and fixed speed camera between 02:00 and 03:00 on Tuesday 1 July.
If anyone has any information about this incident please email include
Evie.Walters@northyorkshire.police.uk with any information. Or call 101 and pass information for incident number 12250119469.
If you prefer to remain anonymous you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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