Speed cameras

[hsvboy06]

This is not another "how to get out of paying" thread...
I was riding home last night and someone coming the other way flashed their headlights and sure enough there was a blue van parked on the side of the road up ahead. No problem, I thought, I wasn't going too fast (105 tops). But just as I was going past I was overtaken by a car which I'm guessing was speeding as it was going significantly faster than me. Flash. More than likely I was in the photo as well.

It made me wonder:

* If there are two vehicles in a speed camera photo, how do they know which one was speeding?

* Is it possible for them to identify a motorcyclist from a head on photo, given there is no plate on the front?

* Why don't motorcycles have plates on the front? They used to (facing sideways on the front guard). On Top Gear a while ago they said it was because they ended up injuring people who went over the bars - is this really the reason?

[Squeak the Rat]

* Is it possible for them to identify a motorcyclist from a head on photo, given there is no plate on the front?

If there is a dude in the van he can write your licence # down. But usually they are asleep in the back or something.

I can't remember the answer to the other ones. Something about bike magazine.

[Ixion]

In theory the pictures are examined and if there is more than one vehicle in the picture no charge is laid

They can only identify a bike if the human operator realises and manually writes down the rego
'
Front number plates were dropped because of the (hypothetical) danger to pedestrians, and they did not comply with design rules about dangerous protrusions . The PTB in Oz made a major effort to reintroduce them in the lsast few years , but have now given up, because they could not find a single mounting point that would be possible on all bikes without the (theoretical) possibility of destabilising handling (and subsequent law suits), or breaching said protusion rules. It was beyond the capability of the bureacratic mind to envisage different mounting points for different bike styles. Thank goodness.

[RC1]

* Why don't motorcycles have plates on the front? They used to (facing sideways on the front guard). On Top Gear a while ago they said it was because they ended up injuring people who went over the bars - is this really the reason?

i believe this to be true, but not entirely sure

[Twig]

Interesting point there. Let us know how you get on and if anything turns up in the post.

[frogfeaturesFZR]

You'd have to come off slowly in order to land on the front guard. I believe pedestrians were hurt when bikes ran into then in the UK.

[Bend-it]

Cool! If we start reversing into pedestrians, then maybe they'll let us take the back plates off as well!

[carver]

This is not another "how to get out of paying" thread...
I was riding home last night and someone coming the other way flashed their headlights and sure enough there was a blue van parked on the side of the road up ahead. No problem, I thought, I wasn't going too fast (105 tops). But just as I was going past I was overtaken by a car which I'm guessing was speeding as it was going significantly faster than me. Flash. More than likely I was in the photo as well.

It made me wonder:

* If there are two vehicles in a speed camera photo, how do they know which one was speeding?

* Is it possible for them to identify a motorcyclist from a head on photo, given there is no plate on the front?

* Why don't motorcycles have plates on the front? They used to (facing sideways on the front guard). On Top Gear a while ago they said it was because they ended up injuring people who went over the bars - is this really the reason?

you wont be prosecuted if there are more than 2 vehicles in the photo.
if they are keen they will take your photo to the local bike shops and ask them if they know you from your bike and gear (thats what they do in the mount anyway!)
plates on the front effect stablilty

[hsvboy06]

I have to say that I'd be pretty stunned if I got a letter in the post about this - unless my speedo is way out. Surely the cage must have been the target - there is no question it was going faster. Anway...
My reason for posting was more that
a) bikes not having plates on the front must be a constant bug-bear for speed camera operators; and
b) if they can't prosecute when there is more than one vehicle in the photo, that also must be frustrating as I imagine it happens a lot.

[Swoop]

There was a very good photo on Fair Go some years back. A person had been photographed speeding and at the instant the photo was taken, a bird flew past and obscured the plate!
Mother Nature HAS a sense of humour!

[-df-]

There was a very good photo on Fair Go some years back. A person had been photographed speeding and at the instant the photo was taken, a bird flew past and obscured the plate!
Mother Nature HAS a sense of humour!

I had something like that happen to me, was going along at a nice pase years ago in my MR2, it was a double lane up a hill (upper harbour drive after the bridge, almost always a camera there) and wasn't thinking and all of a sudden saw the station wagon with the camera, but no time to slow down...just so happened I passed another car just at that time and iy fully blocked the cameras view of me and speed straight past without it flashing (was 50+km over the limit). I was soooo happy at that point beign a poor student!!

[Fub@r]

On a mobile camera if there are two vehicles in the picture, even if it is obvious which vehicle was speeding they can't issue a ticket. If its you on a bike just hope the dude has bad eyesight or asleep. A mate of mine reckoned there was a lso a forward mounted camera in the vans is this right?

If you get snapped on a fixed camera position you will get a ticket as each lane has a sensor in it and the photo along the bottom will specify the lane and speed.

[Ixion]

But but but - a bike might be overtaking a car IN THE SAME LANE (quite legally). Or, more possibly, another bike.

So, if two bikes ride in the same lane both are safe from the fixed speed camera, at any speed.

[What?]

b) if they can't prosecute when there is more than one vehicle in the photo, that also must be frustrating as I imagine it happens a lot.

Not much an issue with the newer cameras - very fast cycle time.

A mate of mine reckoned there was a lso a forward mounted camera in the vans is this right?.

No.

[rok-the-boat]

Do you have GPS in NZ? In Korea there is a company that goes out and zaps the location of every fixed speed camera in the country. 99% are fixed. You can download updates every month. Also, in Korea, and in the UK, they have a speed camera warning sign before every speed camera but I have never seen one in NZ. What gives? Are mobile cameras the norm?

And what radar detectors do you have here? What do you recommend?