Weird Gatso's

Third Opinion · 3 Jul 2006 at 21:57

I have had two strange experiences with Gatso's today.

1. I am travelling home from work through Worthing and heading for the A24. There is a Gatso on the oposite side of the dual carriageway about 200 metres infront. There are no cars travelling past it or even near it. Suddenly it flashes twice as if it's caught a speeder??

2. I get near enough home and some unexpected traffic appears. I am sitting stationary in the car when I am convinced I can see something flashing in my mirror. On rolling forward I get a full view of the Gatso behind me. The Gatso is flashing about every 10 seconds, yet we are stationary???

It was approximately 30c outside can the heat send them didlo?

DannyDan · 3 Jul 2006 at 21:59

Maybe, but I drove past a few in the heat today and they weren't catching imaginary speeders

teh_captain · 3 Jul 2006 at 22:06

For a minute, i thought you said something else then

t3h

Steve · 3 Jul 2006 at 22:09

You can set forward facing ones off but you won't get done for it.

I set the ones on the seefront road in Shoreham/southwick off all the time going past on the otherside of the road

Abraham · 3 Jul 2006 at 22:34

mm agreed, the 1st one was probably being set off by drivers on your side of the road
however the other one does sound a bit screwed

Violent-J · 3 Jul 2006 at 22:44

They're completely random m8, they don't have radars measuring vehicles speed and only flash when someone's speeding or anything like that.

Nazbit · 3 Jul 2006 at 23:17

They dont? :confused:

Third Opinion · 3 Jul 2006 at 23:20

No the road was clear both ways. I was just coming over the brow of a hill so I saw the camera very well, defiantly no other cars.

F355 · 3 Jul 2006 at 23:43

It has been very sunny today; Are you sure it's not just light being reflected off the lens?

Violent-J · 4 Jul 2006 at 00:47

No they're very basic infact, just cameras... That's why the white marking are along the road, if it was done by radar they would not be needed, what the cameras actually do is take two photos one after the other, which can be seen by two quick flashes and then each picture is looked at and the distance the motor vehicle has travelled along the white bars between the two photos can be worked out to find its speed.

If it was done by radar or something clever like that everyone who drove over one at anything above 40mph would get done but they usually take random photos every 10 mins or so.

Pinter75 · 4 Jul 2006 at 00:50

The one on the road to Shoreham near the B&Q has a habit of randomly flashing when nothing is in it's carridgeway.

_dogma_ · 4 Jul 2006 at 01:01

So why do RADAR detectors pick up gatsos then?
Of course they use radar. Whenever something is determined to be speeding by the radar sensor two photos are taken at a known time apart. The white lines are so when someone looks at the two photos of known time apart, and knows how far the white lines are spaced, they can work out your speed using a simple Speed = Distance/Time calculation. It's so they have evidence to convict you if you say you weren't speeding at the time.

[TW]Fox · 4 Jul 2006 at 01:09

I'm sorry, but this is completely and utterly false. This is absolutely not how GATSO speed cameras work. If it simply took a random photo every 10 minutes nobody would ever get caught.

They are set to trigger a photograph at a certain speed, and they DO use radar to measure speed and decide if a photograph is required. The painted lines are simply backup evidence incase the accuracy of the radar is challenged in court.

PardonTheWait · 4 Jul 2006 at 01:22

aaaaaaaaahhahahahahahahahahahahahaahh

Did someone tell you that, or did you just decide it?

Quantic · 4 Jul 2006 at 01:36

Thats is the biggest pile of crap I have ever read.

Mulder · 4 Jul 2006 at 01:38

Lol.

I think you will find Gatso's use radar to determine the speed of each vehicle, and then photograph the ones that are being naughty. Have a little read here:

http://www.kentandmedwaysafetycameras.org.uk/cameras_page02.html

Psycrow · 4 Jul 2006 at 01:59

Just to add, dont GATSOs have around a 100 picture film? Does this mean if it takes a piccy every 10 minutes someone has to change the film around twice a day? That sure is a lot of work for something thats meant to take over the job of human beings!

Gilly · 4 Jul 2006 at 02:02

HAHAHAHAHA... *gasp*...HAHAHAHAHA

stoofa · 4 Jul 2006 at 02:08

Is this a **** take post or is this serious??
Do you honestly think they just take pictures every few minutes and hope that they are lucky enough to catch a speeding motorist?

Mat · 4 Jul 2006 at 09:50

http://www.speedcamerasuk.com/Gatso.htm

"There are over 4,000 fixed Gatso's speed camera's currently in use by police forces and local authorities across the UK, accounting for 90% of all fixed cameras. The Gatso which uses radar technology, is used for fixed speed cameras, in-car mobile units, on tripod's and can even be used from moving vehicle's.
Fixed Gatso speed cameras are rear facing. This is so the cameras 'flash' does not blind oncoming motorists. Unfortunately, this also means the cameras are not always viewable until the last second (as pictured above). The cost of installing a Gatso camera is approximately £20,000, but can cost as much as £40,000 if located in a rural location, as the system requires a 240v power supply.

The fixed Gatso camera has the ability to take up to 400 pictures. Cameras in that are located in busy areas or are particularly hidden, often only last a few hours before the film runs out, soon recouping the £20,000-£40,000 price tag.

Gatso's can also identify between cars/vans and HGV's separately. For example, if the speed limit was 60 mph for cars/vans and 40 mph for HGV's the camera will enforce the two separate limits.

It is common for fixed Gatso's to be positioned so they can be turned around to check both sides of the road - but only one direction at a time.

On the M25 in Berkshire and Surrey Gatso speed cameras have been placed in gantries across the width of the motorway with all four lanes covered simultaneously.

Points and Penalties

Being prosecuted in the UK by a Gatso speed camera can result in a minimum of 3 penalty points and a £60 fine. Fine amounts are currently under review by the government and may increase in near future."