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NSW Drivers Were Issued More Speeding Fines In February Than In The 2019/20 Financial Year

NSW Drivers Were Issued More Speeding Fines In February Than In The 2019/20 Financial Year

The removal of warning signs has seen the number of fines skyrocket 15-fold.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

New South Wales authorities made an absolute killing in speeding fines last month.

Last year, the state permitted mobile speed monitors to sit and wait for motorists without having a warning sign.

It was a move that sparked a lot of controversy, with many drivers saying it should stay mandatory for the signs to be displayed before they go through a speed check.

But it's clear just how lucrative these areas are when there's no warning given.

Labor claims the NSW government brought in roughly $6.2 million in speeding fines in February, which, if you're wondering, is a hell of a lot of money.

NSW Police/Facebook

For comparison, the state government reaped $5.7 million during the whole of the last financial year.

Another comparison shows just how many people drove above the speed limit when they didn't know eyes were watching.

In February last year, there were 1,859 fines issued. In February this year, that number was 15 times higher at 27,985 fines.

Labor's roads spokesman John Graham said: "We have never collected this much money from NSW drivers. This is a revenue record.

"We support these cameras, but we would like to see warning signs in place and some of this money should immediately flow back in to driver education."

January was also a banger of a month for speed fines being issued, with $3.4 million of those pesky pieces of paper being dished out, compared to $382,000 in January 2020.

It ties in with the removal of the speed camera warning signs being slowly phased out from December last year.

The move was introduced following four children being killed in a car crash in Oatlands last year.

Transport Minister Andrew Constance said at the time: "We want to make a difference. "We can't keep doing what we're doing, year in, year out, knowing the impact it has on families, loved ones, children and our community."

The state government also announced plans to introduce tougher penalties for those caught drink and drug driving.

"This massive, life-threatening risk needs a stronger penalty," Mr Constance said. "Across our roads network we have seen this reckless and irresponsible behaviour result in far too many deaths and serious injuries, and these tougher penalties send the message that this behaviour won't be tolerated."

Featured Image Credit: NSW Police/Facebook

Topics: Australia