Bendigo drivers will soon have even more reason to follow the road rules with the city’s fourth fixed speed and red light camera to be switched on at the intersection of Reservoir and McIvor roads in the coming weeks.
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A variable messaging sign has been placed at the Strathdale intersection, warning drivers to slow down and pay attention to the lights.
The signage precedes the planned activation of the camera this month, following an announcement by the state government in January 2016 of new and upgraded cameras at what police describe as “critical intersections” across Victoria
The variable messaging signs will stay in place for a fortnight after the activation of the cameras when the messaging will change to “cameras now enforcing”.
The move comes after it was revealed Bendigo drivers forked out more than $3 million in fines last financial year as the number of motorists caught out by the city’s current cameras reached a four-year high.
The three existing cameras are located at the intersection of High and Don streets in Bendigo, the intersection of Eaglehawk and Marong roads in Ironbark and at the level crossing 40 metres west of Peatlings Road on the Midland Highway in Bagshot.
Of those, the Bagshot camera was the most expensive, costing motorists $2,399,275 in 2015-16, while the Bendigo camera netted $319,816, slightly less than the Ironbark camera’s takings of $323,844.
At the time, senior sergeant Ian Brooks of the Bendigo highway patrol said the figures were a timely reminder to drivers that speed and red light cameras were in place for a reason – to prevent deaths on the road.
“They’re put in there because it’s identified as a high-risk location and it’s obviously a huge safety issue and motorists are expected to obey the traffic lights at the intersection,” he said.
“The ultimate consequence is that somebody has a collision at the intersection and somebody dies, and our primary focus is to reduce the number of crashes – if we reduce the number of crashes then, in all likelihood, the amount of people who are injured or die on our roads goes down with it.”
The new camera is one of five new cameras installed across the state, along with nine camera upgrades, the majority of which will be located in Melbourne.
Other new camera locations:
- Springvale Road and Canterbury Road, Forest Hill
- Maroondah Highway and Ringwood Bypass, Ringwood
- Plenty Road and Dunne Street, Kingsbury
- Canterbury Road and Mitcham Road, Vermont
Upgraded camera locations:
- North Road and Clayton Road, Oakleigh East
- Barkers Road and Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn
- Murray Road and Elizabeth Street, Coburg
- Pascoe Vale Road and Peck Avenue, Strathmore
- Thompson Road and Separation Street, Bell Park
- Princes Highway and Station Street, Corio
- Settlement Road and Torquay Road, Belmont
- Moorabool Street and Fyans Street, South Geelong
