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Speed cameras on the way to stop lead-foot truckies

Speed cameras will be installed on the South Eastern Freeway in Adelaide to catch speeding truck drivers

Ruza Zivkusic-Aftasi | April 12, 2012

Speed cameras will be installed on the South Eastern Freeway in Adelaide to catch speeding truck drivers.

South Australia Transport Department Road and Traffic Management Director Paul Gelston says some 40 truck drivers each day ignore the reduced speed limits on the freeway, which were introduced in May after a series of cashes. Up to 1000 vehicles use the road every day.

Safety cameras are now being installed near the Mt Osmond overpass and near Crafers to ensure that trucks with five or more axles do not exceed the speed limit on the descent into Adelaide.

Loops will also be installed to detect both speed and configuration of large vehicles.

Signs calling on drivers to use low gear are now up on the freeway, Gelston says.

“It’s a long steep descent and on average there are about 20,000 vehicles coming downhill with about 10 percent of those being commercial vehicles,” Gelston says.

“We have had the problem for a few years where trucks are not getting in on the correct gear at the top of the hill and rely on their breaks. We have had a couple of nasty accidents where heavy vehicles have collided with vehicles at the bottom of the hill.

“We need drivers to be aware that there will be safety cameras at the top of the hill and at half-way down the hill,” he adds.

“While most of the vehicles are around the 60km/h mark, there are still a number that exceed 65km/h. That’s really unacceptable in terms of the risk and to all other road users and the drivers of heavy vehicles.”

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