Skip to main content

French speed cameras prevented 15,000 fatal road crashes in 7 years, study claims

The installation of speed cameras in France prevented around 15,000 fatal and 62,000 non-fatal road accidents between November 2003 and December 2010, according to a study in the international review Accident Analysis and Prevention. The mortality rate per 100,000 vehicles is said to have fallen 42% from 1.86 in November 2003 to 1.07 in October 2010. A second study found that speed cameras were most effective at reducing excessive speed infractions (more than 20km/h over the limit) and moderate speed infrac
April 8, 2013 Read time: 1 min
The installation of speed cameras in France prevented around 15,000 fatal and 62,000 non-fatal road accidents between November 2003 and December 2010, according to a study in the international review Accident Analysis and Prevention. The mortality rate per 100,000 vehicles is said to have fallen 42% from 1.86 in November 2003 to 1.07 in October 2010.

A second study found that speed cameras were most effective at reducing excessive speed infractions (more than 20km/h over the limit) and moderate speed infractions (between 10 and 20km/h over the limit), with the percentage of fatal accidents falling from 25% to 6% and 13% to 9% respectively between 2001 and 2010. The number of minor speed infractions (less than 10km/h over the limit) remained stable, but the percentage of fatal accidents rose from 7% to 13%.

Related Content

  • Road accident database vital for road safety
    April 12, 2012
    In the last of our profiles of laureates of the inaugural Innovation Award for Road Transport in Developing Countries (InARoaD), we meet the winner of the Road Safety category, and third prize overall A vital prerequisite for achieving safer roads is thorough assessment of prevailing traffic situations and identification of associated factors. In this respect, the availability of a comprehensive road accident database is crucial for understanding the pattern of accident causation. Conscious of the ne
  • Briefly, and to the point
    May 9, 2012
    The low risk found for driving through the tunnel is primarily due to the low volume of traffic of around 11,000 vehicles/day and the ban on HGVs and the transport of hazardous goods. Unidirectional traffic, sufficiently wide lanes, emergency lanes and lighting are the main reasons for the very good result for preventive measures. The tunnel is monitored around-the-clock in a tunnel control centre manned by trained staff, and incidents are automatically reported to the control centre by video link. If neces
  • Dutch road deaths nearly halved in 15 years
    July 18, 2012
    Dutch road deaths have nearly halved in the last 15 years, according to new figures by the country’s central statistics bureau CBS. There were 661 road deaths in the Netherlands in 2011, down 47% from 1,251 in 1996. For passenger cars over the same period there was a 73.5% decrease in road fatalities, from 609 to 221.
  • Tanzania’s work on East Africa’s multi-national road project
    November 28, 2022
    Tanzania is kick-starting construction work on the missing link in East Africa's multinational road