In case that you don’t know S.P.E.C.S is an abbreviation for ‘Speed Enforcement Camera System’ and are used to monitor the average speed of vehicles travelling on dual carriage ways and motorways in the UK and are often set up when there are long term road works in place and a temporary lower speed limit is in force, you may have seen them, they are normally on a high yellow gantry and have two cameras pointing at the road, they can monitor up to four lanes of traffic at once and have infra red illuminator's so that they can work at night as well as in the day, they are spaced evenly throughout the site that they are placed in and are linked to a central computer and a group of cameras will cover any length of road that they are set up in.

Some driver’s think that they work like a GATSO camera and take a photograph if triggered by travelling past them too fast, so drivers slow down on the approach and then speed up again when they have past them, in fact it is this kind of driver that they are designed to catch as the S.P.E.C.S. will record your license plate with a digital time stamp as you pass by, it uses ANPR (automatic number plate recognition), and will do the same again when you pass by the next set, the computer will then work out your speed by measuring how long it has taken you to cover the distance between the cameras points and if you have been travelling too fast you will receive a PCN in the post.

As you can see it is pointless slowing down at the camera and then speeding up again as this will have no effect and you won’t even know if you have been caught breaking the speed limit as the camera does not flash, so you could be fined and gain penalty points on your driving license or face a ban quite easily and not know anything about it until the PCN lands on your doormat, so it is always best practice to observe the speed limit and if you have one fitted use your cruise control to help you to maintain a constant speed, in the case of an HGV driver your tachograph will also be used as evidence if you were to be prosecuted.

If you are observant you will notice that the cameras are positioned on each entry and exit point on the road and that they are spaced at regular points along the carriage way so it is impossible to avoid them, you will always pass by two camera sites from where ever you have joined the road and before you leave, so the best practice is to pay attention and observe the speed limit at all times as nobody wants points on their license or a fine to pay.

Simon
20/Dec/11

Source: http://simon-b.org/s-p-e-c-s-cameras.php

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