Bikers to be targeted by average-speed cameras

The first average-speed cameras capable of catching motorcycles are to be installed on popular riding routes under plans announced last week.

The cameras will be funded by the government with the intention of targeting bikers.

They will be rear-facing so they can read our number plates and will measure average speed over many miles, meaning speeders who slow down as they pass cameras will still be caught.  

They are to be installed on single-carriageway rural roads starting with the famous A537 Cat and Fiddle run from Buxton, Derbyshire to Macclesfield, Cheshire, in a scheme costing £1.9 million.

A Cheshire East Council spokesman said: “The plan is to put some average-speed cameras along the road in a joint venture with our counterparts in Derbyshire.”

Lee Murphy, manager of the Cheshire Safer Roads Partnership, added: “We will be seeking an average speed camera that can capture rear-facing images.

“At the moment the plan is to install the units on the A537, and possibly a small bit of the A54 which joins onto the A537.”

A Derbyshire spokesman said the cameras could also be used on other routes.

A DfT funding announcement said the cash was for ‘a project to reduce the disproportionately high numbers of motorcyclist casualties on the A537 “Cat and Fiddle”’.  

Neither region would say how many cameras are planned or when they will be operational, although Robert Hill, manager of the Derby and Derbyshire Road Safety Partnership, said the plans were to address a “problem” on the Cat and Fiddle “from Easter”.

Do you ride on the Cat and Fiddle? MCN wants to expose the cameras as soon as they go up, so if you’re a regular on the route, you can help.

If you spot any new roadside furniture that looks the part, email: steve.farrell@motorcyclenews.com