M4 speed camera incident

Aylesbury_Duck

I was travelling along the M4 westbound between junctions 19 and 20 on Wednesday night at about 9.30pm. The signs were saying there was congestion after the upcoming M5 junction and the displayed limit was reduced to 60mph. I must have passed about three gantry signs all displaying 60mph and those ahead were also displaying 60mph. Traffic around me was very light. I was in lane one with another car just outside me. My speedometer showed just under 60mph, my satnav indicated 55mph. As I passed under the gantry I'm sure I registered a single, bright flash to my rear. The other car was gradually overtaking me but was not going much quicker at all, probably only just about 60mph. There were no other cars passing under the gantry at that point. My first thought was that perhaps I'd been unlucky and the limit had just dropped to 50mph but the next sign ahead was still showing 60mph as were all the others we passed before and afterwards.

I assume that if I have been caught in error, there's nothing I can do about it? Can the camera mis-fire? It only flashed once, not twice. If photographed, does a human check the speed registered before sending the letter out and stop any that are obviously a mistake?

I've got a clean licence so although a fine and points would be a nuisance, it's not the end of the world, but I presume it will be too much hassle and potential cost to challenge it if I am penalised? I can't see how I could prove my innocence anyway.

lol_omg_wtf

Maybe the car next to you had no tax/mot/insurance. They have cameras for that stuff now. Better check your own? If thats all good then i wouldnt worry about it.

globalds

Cross the bridge when you get to it

unforeseen

globalds wrote: »

Cross the bridge when you get to it

The old bridge or the new one? :rotfl:

GTE_Boy

lol_omg_!!!!!! wrote: »

Maybe the car next to you had no tax/mot/insurance. They have cameras for that stuff now. Better check your own? If thats all good then i wouldnt worry about it.

But that wouldn't activate a speed camera.

Aylesbury_Duck

Cheers all. Yes, I'm patient, but just curious as to whether a mistake can occur. I'm all up to date on tax, insurance, MoT.

facade

The cameras and the variable limit signs are controlled by an infallible computer, and it is absolutely, totally impossible for it to display a different limit to that enforced by the camera (or so they say...)

Just have to wait and see if anything turns up in the next fortnight. Although it is absolutely, totally impossible, people have reported that the cameras do occasionally go off for no reason.

If you do get an NIP go over to peppipoo for advice, there was a long running saga over a particular gantry on the M6 a while back.

Aylesbury_Duck

Thanks facade.

forgotmyname

Had a similar thing happen on the M6 in the roadworks. I didnt get flashed but between 2 gantries the speed limit changed, but with the roadworks there were large signs at the side of the motorway also.

So i passed a gantry with 50 on it, then a gantry with end, then the static sign left and right showing national limit, and then and you round the bend the next gantry was 50mph again.

Nothing ever came through but thought how would you prove that?

Another time exiting the M6 onto the M54, Speed restrictions on the M6 then whilst in the M54 exit lane it said national limit. But then further up there were 50mph signs.

In cahoots with the great big dash cam selling company me thinks. One way of proving the signs were miselading/incorrect.

livetoclimb

I live in Bristol, my work is about a mile from J20 of the M4 and I drive a lot for work. I drive this stretch of the M4 virtually every day. The exact same happened to me last year and I know i was doing at least 10 under the 50 limit displayed.

I got caught doing 35 in a 30 by a camera van about a month later (oops) and ended up in a speed awareness course, and decided to ask the people running it if, as former traffic officers, they could explain. They told me that they didn't know of any incidences of those cameras going off incorrectly, but (and here's the important bit) they have two 'quirks'.

The first is that they are programmed not to flash anyone doing under the higher of two limits in the first minute after the variable limit changes, even if it has gone from say 50 to 40mph. So for 60 seconds you're safe.

The second (and this one is more likely to be relevant to you) is that they will go off seemingly randomly as 'calibration'. I occasionally see them go off when traffic is literally crawling under them (easily seen if you're approaching the flashes on the other side of the motorway). I commented that surely that's not great for drivers who will worry that they've been flashed in error (like you) but they didn't really seem to care.

If you're 100% sure you were doing under the limit then I think you're probably safe. And if you were speeding, then you can ask them the same when you're on your course!

Muscle750

If the worst comes to the worst which i doubt ask them to provide the calibration cert etc for the camera however i doubt if you will hear anything as long as what your saying is correct. I saw one go off on M4 in Wales nothing around me and i never got anything and i was going over the limit althou not by alot