Fake speed cameras taken down in Shurdington

Fake speed cameras installed in a village to encourage motorists to slow down have been removed.

Residents said they had noticed two fake cameras that were placed in Shurdington, Gloucestershire, had reduced the number of speeding drivers.

Vehicles have been recorded travelling at 80mph (128kmph) through the village.

A Shurdington Parish Council spokesperson said: "We were thrilled to see some community action but we do not approve or support it."

The cameras had initially appeared on Saturday night.

The village's speed watch team is made up of 12 volunteers who run three one-hour sessions per week.

According the the Local Democracy Reporting Service, over the past year, the volunteers had recorded more than 1,600 cases of excessive speeding in the village.

County councillor, Robert Vines, said speeding was an issue in Shurdington, and suggested that speed cameras could be effective if they were enforced.

"There's no easy answer to the problem.

"Some people might suggest speed humps or speed cameras.

"But cameras are only any good if it has film in it and it is enforced," he said.

A spokesperson from Gloucestershire Constabulary said driving just a few miles per hour above the speed limit could be the difference between life and death.

They said: "Speeding is one of the 'fatal four' causes of road deaths and injury in the county along with using a mobile phone while driving, not wearing a seatbelt and drink or drug driving.

"Driving within the set limit allows you to stop safely within the distance you can see to be clear providing time to react and avoid a collision with another road user.

"Speed limits are set for a reason and exceeding them is illegal," they added.

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