By Linzi Watson

Last updated 11:51, Monday, 20 October 2008

CUMBRIA Safety Camera’s team have told a national conference how a change in strategy has driven down the number of people killed and seriously injured in the county below Government targets – three years early.

Praise: Kevin Tea

The group’s Jan Sjorup and Kevin Tea shared their findings with road safety experts from across the country last week.

The conference, at Manchester Airport, was attended by road safety minister Jim Fitzpatrick, Tricia Hayes, strategic director at the Department for Transport, senior members of the Association of Chief Police Officers and managers from other safety camera partnerships through the UK.

Mr Tea said: “When the Department for Transport changed the way we were allowed to operate in April 2007 we were the first safety camera partnership in the UK to operate an ‘operate anywhere’ random road watch, which allowed us to operate along routes rather than at casualty hotspots.

“As a result of this we have seen a drop in the numbers of people killed or seriously injured (KSI) which brought us in under the Government’s 2010 targets by the end of 2007.

“This was no mean feat considering the early spring had made April one of the worst months for fatal and serious injury casualties for many years.”

The Cumbrian team have also won recognition from an Australian safety camera expert, Dr Mark Leggett.

In an email to them, Dr Leggett said: “These results are encouraging and a credit to all those involved in the Cumbria programme.

“Tests should show that the results are already statistically significant.”

Following news of the success of the random road watch policy, the local safety camera team have been visited by managers from Devon and Cornwall, Norfolk and North Yorkshire who are interested in adopting the strategy.

LWatson@cngroup.co.uk