IT'S hard to feel too much sympathy for the hundreds of drivers who have already been nabbed by the city's new red light and speeding cameras installed on the Great Western Highway.
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In the first three months that the cameras were in operation at the intersection of Durham and Bentinck streets and Stewart and Keppel streets, the cameras caught more than 1800 people doing the wrong thing while behind the wheel.
Between them, those two sets up cameras collected almost $400,000 in fines for the state government - money, you would think, few of the drivers were happy to part with.
But with signage displayed at both intersections to warn drivers the cameras are there, it's hard to imagine how so many still get caught.
It's about to be a very different story at mobile speed cameras across the state.
The state government has announced changes to the operation of mobile speed cameras that will see the current need for warning signs to be installed at each site removed over the next 12 months.
That will mean the first a driver knows about the mobile speed camera will be when he or she passes it - hopefully at or below the posted speed limit.
There has been a mixed reaction to the change with supporters saying removing the warning signs will encourage more drivers to stay below the speed limit more often while detractors argue it is simply another cash grab from the government.
In announcing the change earlier this month, though, Roads Minister Andrew Constance said: "This is about changing culture and changing behaviour. We've seen it happen with our world leading mobile phone detection program, where the rate of people offending has steadily declined.
"No warnings signs mean you can be caught anywhere, anytime and we want that same culture around mobile speed cameras." Makes sense, doesn't it?
If speed limits are in place to improve safety on our roads then we should expect all drivers to stick to them - and not just when they're warned a camera is about to check if they're speeding.
If you do get caught you'll pay a fine, but at least be comforted by the thought that the money is going to a good cause - the Community Road Safety Fund to finance road safety infrastructure and programs.
And if you don't want to support such a cause then don't speed - and don't run red lights. It's pretty simple, really.
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