Speed cameras

Speed cameras on Britain’s busiest motorway are about to go digital.

The M25 is currently controlled by wet-film Gatsos. But there are now plans to replace these with the latest electronic kit, according to a source at the Highways Agency. As a result, thousands more speeding motorists could face fines.

Our insider claims the cost and time required to maintain the traditional traps – which can catch only 400 motorists before the film has to be changed – leads to many housings regularly being left dormant.

But the source said that the new Highways Agency Digital Enforce­ment Camera Systems (HADECS), already being trialled on the M42, has no such restriction. “Many cameras on the M25 aren’t ‘live’, so speeding drivers are not being caught. But that will change when this new system comes in,” he said. “It automatically enforces variable speed limits – the kit takes the picture, and sends it straight to police for ticketing,” he said.

A Highways Agency spokeswoman denied the claims, saying: “There are no immediate plans to introduce these digital systems on the M25.” However, she admitted that the agency was about to release the results of its recent consultation into the Active Traffic Management trials on the M42 –which include the HADECS pilot.