Funding

Since April 2007 there has been a change in the way that Safety Camera Partnerships across the country are funded.

Before April, Safety Camera Partnerships were funded through the Governments National Safety Camera Programme. This meant that all the fines collected from fixed and mobile cameras and red light junction cameras went straight back to the Governments Department for Constitutional Affairs. The only money that could be claimed back by Partnerships from the Government was an agreed amount which covered the operational costs of the Partnership.

Since April, when the National Safety Camera Programme ended, the funding for Safety Camera Partnerships has been integrated into wider road safety budgets held by Local Authorities, The Local Transport Plan (LTP2).  The aim of this is to give Local Authorities the freedom to look at a mix of road safety measures, including enforcement but also engineering and education which will meet local needs. The money collected from speeding fines will still go directly to the Government (Ministry of Justice), the Treasury then pass the money down to Local Authorities to channel into road safety.

What does this mean for Dorset?

It has been agreed by our partner organisations that the Dorset Safety Camera Partnership will continue to operate as it did before the change in funding. This means we will continue to enforce in areas where there has been a history of fatalities or serious injuries. We will however also be able to look at more local speed complaints from residents across the county. We are also able to be involved in a wider range of road safety initiatives. Although our main focus will continue to be on reducing the number of people driving at inappropriate and excessive speeds we will be able to tackle wider road safety issues to promote safer driving throughout all road user groups.  As ever we will continue to support our partners in the work they do to make Dorset a safer place.