Safety cameras

Our streets need to be safe for all. The Vision Zero action plan shows that by driving fast or by going through red traffic lights, people are more likely to cause a collision. It's also more likely for that collision to be fatal or have a serious outcome.

Speed is the single most important factor in the likelihood and severity of a collision. In 2020, it was a factor in around half of all fatal collisions in London.

Almost 4,000 people are killed and seriously injured on London's roads every year. The action plan outlines how we are determined to tackle speed and other dangerous behaviours to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our streets. This includes lowering speed limits across London, which is one of the most important ways to reduce road danger.

Safety cameras help us to effectively manage and enforce speed limits and red traffic lights across London. They are a proven and cost-effective means of improving road safety. The cameras aim to discourage drivers from driving recklessly and to catch those who do. In many cases, the presence of a camera deters such driving. In cases where it does not, the police are able to take enforcement action against the driver which could include a driver education course, a fixed penalty notice or court prosecution.

We provide funding for safety camera enforcement carried out by the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) and the City of London Police (CoLP). We are currently working closely with the police to increase their capacity to take enforcement action to 1 million offences per year by 2024/25 and to maximise the capability of our camera network. We have also invested in new technology such as mobile speed cameras, which enable enforcement in a greater range of locations across the capital.

Types of safety camera

A mixture of different types of safety cameras are used in London. These include over 800 static spot speed cameras and red-light cameras and 6 average speed camera schemes. These cameras are primarily installed at sites where:

• People have been killed or seriously injured (KSI)
• Non-compliance is creating significant risk due to drivers or riders speeding or contravening a red light

We also operate several mobile spot speed cameras in conjunction with the MPS that are deployed to locations across the capital.

We currently use the following safety cameras in London:

• Static Spot Speed - RedSpeed 1.0: To enforce the speed limit, the cameras use a set of sensors embedded in the road surface to detect the speed of all passing vehicles
• Static Red-Light - RedSpeed 1.0: To enforce a red traffic light, the cameras use sensors embedded in the road surface just before and after the stop line to detect if a vehicle passes over it when the traffic light is red
• Static Average Speed - RedFusion / Yunex Safezone2 / Jenoptik SPECS3: These use ANPR to identify a vehicle entering the camera zone and measure the time it takes the vehicle to travel between 2 fixed points. This enables the camera to calculate the average speed of the vehicle within the camera zone
• Mobile Speed - Truvelo LaserCam 4: These are operated by trained MPS Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs). The cameras use pulses of laser light to measure the changing distance between the speed gun and the vehicle being checked, which enables the system to accurately calculate the vehicle's speed

Safety camera detection and enforcement

The MPS and CoLP carry out enforcement for offences detected by safety cameras funded by TfL. In the following years, the number of camera offences where police action was taken by the MPS is:

• 2022/23 - 658,495
• 2021/22 - 497,385
• 2020/21 - 294,245

If you'd like to know more about police action for speeding or have received a speed camera activation letter or notice, visit the Metropolitan Police website or the City of London Police website.

Our Vision Zero Enforcement Dashboard tool shows enforcement data recorded by the police. The dashboard contains data on:

• Arrests
• Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) issued by the police for public reports of road traffic offences and for offences detected through London's safety cameras
• Traffic Offence Reports (TORs) issued by police at the roadside
• Letters to speeding motorists identified through Community Roadwatch

Data is available from January 2015 to December 2022 and will be updated every month. You can access the dashboard through our Road safety data page.

Mobile camera speed enforcement

Our investment in mobile speed enforcement technology enables cameras to be deployed to locations across the capital that are not covered by our static camera network. Working together with the MPS, we have set up a process for London Borough Councils to request additional speed enforcement where community concerns exist.

Borough officials can make requests directly to TfL, often in response to public concerns. Cameras have been successfully deployed to several locations across London, carrying out both enforcement and visual deterrence.

Driver education courses

TfL and the MPS are committed to education as an alternative to prosecution, where appropriate. When a driver is caught breaking the speed limit, they may be offered the opportunity to attend a Speed Awareness Course.

The course gives training and guidance which aims to make the roads safer by helping people to drive at a safe speed within the speed limit. The course is designed to show them how to identify the speed limits, how to recognise and resist pressure to speed from themselves and others and how to avoid distractions.

Studies show that these are effective methods of changing behaviour among low-level offenders. Driver education courses may also be offered to offenders who commit red light or distraction offences.

Find out more on the ttc website.

Other enforcement approaches

Safety cameras are only one of the ways to tackle speed related deaths and serious injuries on our roads. TfL and our partners use other policing and enforcement approaches to reduce road danger.

On-street enforcement

Police officers are responsible for the on-street enforcement of speed limits and other road traffic offences. In London, enforcement is usually carried out by the MPS Roads and Transport Policing Command and the City of London Police (CoLP).

On-street enforcement may result in a driver being issued a Traffic Offence Report (TOR) at the roadside whereby the driver may be eligible to take a driver education course, receive a fine and points on their driving licence or be prosecuted.

We provide funding for on-street speed enforcement carried out by the MPS and CoLP.

Community Roadwatch

We work in partnership with the MPS and CoLP to deliver our Community & Junior Roadwatch schemes, which aim to reduce speeding in residential areas and near schools.

RoadSafeLondon

The public can report dangerous, illegal, or antisocial road user behaviour directly to the police with their online reporting tool, RoadSafe London. Every report helps the police and TfL to understand where and when bad road user behaviour takes place. The information and intelligence gathered may lead to a prosecution or deployment of resources.

Due to the legal timeframes for the police to action a report, you should aim to report within 10 days of the incident. You will be asked for a range of details about where and when the incident took place and who was involved, including the registration number of offending vehicle(s). To be accepted in court, your evidence should:

• Include one minute before and one minute after the incident in any video footage
• Be in your possession
• Not have been edited or manipulated in any way and not have been shared on the internet (including social media)

Your report will be reviewed by the police, and they will assess whether they can take any action.