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Support / Speed Trap Guide

Speed cameras

Gatso – Measures your speed and photograph the rear of your vehicle.

TruVelo – Measures your speed and photograph the front of the vehicle along with driver.

SPECS – Measures your average speed between two points and photograph the front of the vehicle.

Watchman – Measures your speed and photograph the front of the vehicle along with driver.

Speedcurb – Measures your speed and photographs the rear of your vehicle.

DS2 – Semi-permanent, sensor based system that connects to a camera on a tripod.

Safety Camera Vans – Mobile enforcement vehicles that use Laser guns to measure vehicle speed.

Mobile Laser – Hand-held devices that record your speed in either direction

Speed trap guide

Radar stands for Radio Detecting And Ranging.  Radar based systems operate by transmitting radio waves at certain frequencies which reflect off objects and are then picked up by the radar systems receiving section.  When a radar beam reflects off a moving object, a measurable frequency shift occurs.  The radar system then converts this shift into miles per hour to determine the vehicle's speed.

All about radar frequencies

Globally there are ten different sets of frequencies used for speed monitoring.  In the UK only two radar frequencies are used, K band & Ku band (in a very limited way).  Coverage of frequencies other than K & Ku will cause a detector to false alarm at devices such as traffic lights, supermarket doors (X band devices) and many mobile telephones and their transmitters (Ka band). Other European countries use a combination of frequencies, currently the only radar detectors capable of detecting ALL frequencies used worldwide are the Beltronics Target Euro 550 (see page 20) and the older Bel 990 International.

VASCAR facts

Vascar is an acronym for Visual Average Speed Computer And Recorder.
 This is little more than a glorified stopwatch.  It is a simple timing based enforcement technique whereby a vehicle is timed over a set distance (for example, between two painted white markings on the road surface or two motorway bridges), an average speed is then automatically calculated. Vascar is operated by a qualified traffic policeman and is unfortunately at the mercy of 'human error'. No radio waves or beams of light are emitted therefore Vascar is unable to be detected by any type of radar/laser or GPS based detector.  It comes in a variety of forms and is used mostly in motorway situations.  Due to the need for good visibility, Vascar should only be used in daylight or in well lit areas of road.  Poor weather conditions such as heavy rain and fog will also mean that Vascar cannot be used.  Vascar  is not the most sophisticated system in the world and as time passes it is expected that it will be replaced by more accurate and up-to-date speed measuring  systems.  Already some police forces in the UK have taken Vascar systems out of service following successful legal defences by members of the public.

Laser explained

The Laser Speed Detection System, also called LIDAR (for Light Detection And Ranging), uses a laser gun that emits infrared light pulses just outside the spectrum of visible light.  Each pulse measures the distance to any object that reflects the laser.  The speed of the object coming towards the laser gun is calculated by measuring how quickly the pulses are reflected back into the gun.  Unlike radar signals, the output of the laser gun is a very narrow beam of light, so that it can pinpoint a speeding car within traffic. The infrared beam spreads out, but slowly and over a longer distance.   So how can a radar/laser detector detect a laser beam?  Well, a decent radar detector will offer both good main beam laser detection and also (and more importantly) detection of what is called 'off-axis energy'.  As the laser signal travels through the air, the beam is actually wider than the nominal main beam.  This is caused by scattering of the laser energy when it encounters water vapour or pockets of warm or cold air in the atmosphere. This scattering makes the beam appear considerably wider than that claimed by the laser gun manufacturers.  A laser gun has a maximum effective range of about 2000 ft, although it is rarely used at such distances, 1000 ft being the average operating distance. Laser gun technology is now also used in the infamous 'safety camera van' system now deployed on the UK's roads.
It should be pointed out however that detecting a laser signal is not easy and won't happen 100% of the time. There are circumstances where a laser detector can be ineffective, such as when no vehicles are being targeted ahead of you.
Since there will be no 'scatter' to pick-up, your detector will only alarm when the trigger of the laser gun is pressed, your laser detector will warn you at this point, but it will be too late, the laser system will already have your speed.

Speed Cameras

GATSO is the name given to the Dutch-made 'Photographic Trap' system used in the UK and other European countries.  GATSO traps are unmanned and take a photograph of the rear of offending vehicles.  Speeding convictions are processed automatically and dealt with through the postal system. Normally a 'fixed penalty' is the price paid for a Gatso offence, typically a £60 fine and 3 penalty points.  Stiffer penalties and fines (and a court appearance) occur in circumstances where the posted speed limit was broken by a sizable margin.  Gatso traps operate on K band radar and are therefore detectable by most good radar detectors. GPS based systems are also able to locate Gatso sites, although in a different way, this is explained later in this guide.
The vast majority of Gatso sites are inactive, the average ratio is one 'live' camera site for every fifteen boxes.  Even 'inactive' sites will appear to take photographs of passing vehicles by flashing at them, since no photographic equipment is installed, no photographs can be taken.  If the Gatso system is fully loaded it is transmitting K band radar signals constantly, monitoring the speed of every vehicle that passes.  If a vehicle passes the site exceeding the system's preset limit (normally the limit is set at 10% above the posted limit plus 2mph), two photographs are taken, each 0.9 seconds apart.  To the naked eye, it is impossible to tell whether a site is live or not.  Only radar detector owners can tell whether a Gatso site is actually active or empty.

In addition to the standard Gatso system, there is also a special version that has been developed to catch motorists who 'jump' red lights.  These use induction loops in the road surface and cannot therefore be detected.

TRUVELO is the name given to another type of speed camera used on the UK's roads. Truvelo looks very similar to Gatso but can be identified by its blue colour, twin lenses on the front and by the fact that it faces the oncoming traffic. Unlike Gatso however, Truvelo uses induction loops in the road surface to gauge a vehicle's speed. This makes it undetectable by conventional radar/laser detectors, but like Gatso, because Truvelo is a 'fixed' system, it can be located by a GPS based detection product.

Currently there are just over 5,000 photographic cameras in the UK, with government plans to double this tally over the next two years.

SPECS

SPECS is the name of the much hyped 'DIGITAL' speed camera system, currently being deployed in a small number of locations around the country.
SVDD (Speed Violation Detection Deterrent) is the digital brain which the SPECS system is based upon, is a state of the art video system with number plate recognition built in.  Consisting of two digital video cameras each fitted with Infra Red Illuminators.  They are fitted at the roadside, a set distance apart, on a special mounting pole, bridge or any other suitable mounting point. Linked together via computer, SPECS takes an image of every vehicle that passes the first camera point, speeding or not.  Then (by using optical character recognition) the vehicle's registration number, time and date is recorded. When a vehicle passes the second camera point, the same information is recorded.  The SPECS system is then able to calculate how long it has taken the target vehicle to travel between the two fixed points.  An average speed is then calculated.  If the average speed exceeds the pre-set limit, the computer stores the details and then dials out to the DVLA’s computer to gather the driver’s address information etc.  A Notice of Intended Prosecution is then generated and mailed to the registered owner of the car. The advantage of the SPECS system (over the standard GATSO camera system) is that it never runs out of film, because it doesn’t use film - instead, it stores the video images digitally. SPECS doesn’t emit a signal of any kind and is therefore undetectable by conventional radar/laser detectors.  Only GPS based systems are capable of detecting SPECS, or the TRUVELO fixed camera system for that matter (as used on the A14 north of Cambridge for example).

GPS speed trap locators

GPS (Global Positioning System) is a system of 24 satellites which
circle 11,000 nautical miles above the earth twice daily in a precise
orbit.  
The satellites transmit information back to earth
at the speed of light, which can then be picked up by GPS receivers.

By using a method of triangulation, a GPS receiver is able you to
identify your exact position anywhere on earth, at any time. A GPS
receiver needs to see at least three satellites in order to calculate
its position.  When this information is combined with a database of
speed trap locations, it is possible for the device to accurately warn
the user of approaching dangers such as accident blackspots or speed
cameras. Currently speed trap location databases only exist for the
UK, the Netherlands and Belgium. Use of a GPS based product outside
these countries is therefore not possible.

Detector legality in the UK

It has been legal to own and use a radar detector in the UK since early
1998, following a ground-breaking ruling in the High Court. Ownership
and/or use of a radar/laser detector in most other European countries
is prohibited. Confiscation of the equipment and an instant fine
(upwards of £300 in most cases) is the norm.  For further advice and
information on the legal situation in specific countries please call us
on 01555 666 444.