Mapped: UK areas with the most speed cameras revealed
The UK city with the most speed cameras per mile has been revealed – and it’s not London.
Despite being smaller, Bradford outperforms the UK capital with 2.18 cameras per square mile, according to data analysis from the motoring insurance company zego. The West Yorkshire city has paired its dense camera network with the introduction of 20mph zones.
London, the country’s largest and most populous city, comes in second with 1.93 cameras per square mile. According to Transport for London (TfL), the city has more than 800 static speed cameras and red light cameras, as well as six average speed camera setups, as part of efforts to reduce the number of deaths and injuries on the roads.
TfL also announced in March that it would be trialling new cameras without visible flash, white light, in-ground sensors or road markings. Instead, the new cameras incorporate 4D radar, which the transport operator hopes will offer greater reliability and more effective speed detection.
Hounslow came third on the list with 1.86 speed cameras per square mile, while Tipton in the Black Country and Dewsbury in West Yorkshire rounded out the top five with 1.74 and 1.63 speed camera densities per square mile respectively.
Coventry ranked sixth with 243 cameras and a density of 1.57 per square mile. The city also created 20 mph zones on residential streets and streets where schools are located and implemented a series of average speed enforcement plans.
The figures come just two months after the Home Office announced record-breaking car crime figures. Drivers in England and Wales outside London will be caught committing a record 2.9 million crimes in 2024; this is a nine percent increase over the previous year’s total of 2.7 million. This was the highest figure recorded since comparable data collection began in 2011.
A staggering 2.5 million (86 percent) of these incidents involved drivers exceeding the speed limit; This is a new record.
Meanwhile, referrals to speed awareness courses have more than doubled in the last decade. Figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) last year revealed that 1.84 million drivers in the UK will take a speed awareness course by 2024; This is up three percent from the previous year and 139 percent since 2011.
These courses are offered to drivers caught driving slightly over the speed limit as an alternative to fines or license points.
Drivers caught speeding can only attend the course once every three years, which includes presentations, quizzes and group discussions addressing personal responsibility, managing speed and the dangers of speeding.
Course duration is usually three hours and prices vary depending on the applicant police force; Drivers cannot pass or fail these courses; The only requirement is to arrive on time and stay for class. Participants of the course do not need to notify insurance companies in order to prevent their premiums from being affected.
Anyone who gets 12 or more penalty points within three years will face a driving ban. New drivers may have their license revoked if they receive six or more points within two years of passing the test.
The AA Yonder survey found that 80 per cent of 1,955 drivers who attended a speed awareness course in the last three years felt they were more conscious of speed and 79 per cent believed they were safer drivers.
AA President Edmund King OBE said: “Our research shows that speed awareness courses work. The majority of drivers who attend these courses say they become more aware of their speed and feel safer behind the wheel as a result.”
“In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, these courses have helped change behavior without placing undue burden on the courts. They give drivers the opportunity to learn rather than simply being punished. Those who attended the courses generally say the courses should be offered to all drivers, and 79 per cent would recommend the courses to others.
“Education can be a powerful tool in improving road safety, reducing reoffending and potentially saving lives.”
