Thursday, February 20, 2014

Wiesbaden and Its Cameras

Blitz cameras (speed cameras) are a fact of life in Wiesbaden.  There are a total of nine (as of this week) stationary cameras mounted on steel columns or posts, and actively working within the city limits.

Most folks can name at least half the streets affected, and generally watch carefully for the cameras.  Since they are mounted.....they don't move.

The newest one?  Down on Berlin Strasse.

The local paper (the Kourier) did up an article on the topic.  These stationary steel posts.....cost around eighty thousand Euro each ($100,000).  What the city will admit over the 2013 period....they collected around two million Euro in fines (equals roughly $2.5 million dollars).  It's a fair sum of money.

You'd think after a year or two....folks would get smart, and memorize the cameras, and thereby avoid them or the flash.  But....that doesn't seem to happen.

One advantage that the stationary camera has over the move-around-type....is that they are placed into position with a great deal of practice and science applied, and the court cases are not able to beat the rap of the ticket.  There's a belief among Germans....that mobile speed cameras are barely fifty percent reliable....thus inviting people to fight the case in court.  The German cops won't say the win-lose ratio.....probably for obvious reasons.

More cameras in the future?  I would make a humble bet that the current group will be doubled within five years.  It's just too big of a money-maker for the city to avoid.  Hostile feelings?  Well....yeah.  Fifty Euro here, a hundred Euro there.....a guy could get to feeling fairly negative about this sort of thing.

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