UPDATED: Ministry denies speed cameras are 'a tax'

The Transport Ministry today denied that speed cameras were a new tax, as claimed by PL leader Joseph Muscat on Sunday. It pointed out that at the sites where new cameras are being installed, two persons died and 59 were seriously injured in the past three years. There were also 182 accidents in which no one was hurt.

As for the speed limit, the ministry said research confirmed that excessive speed was the major cause of accidents. Every one kilometre per hour less in speed reduced accidents by 3%.

'The government has a duty to safeguard people's lives and wellbeing,' the ministry said, while accusing Dr Muscat of seeking popularity.

It also denied that there was a nation-wide speed limit and said the law laid down that drivers had to follow speed limits indicated on road signs.

The ministry said Dr Muscat on Sunday had probably been referring to the Highway Code, which said that drivers should not exceed 80km/h - where there were no road signs indicating otherwise.

It insisted that speed limits were not set by politicians but by technical experts.

The ministry said Dr Muscat's incompetence was 'dangerous'.

The Labour Party in a reaction said traffic experts too were calling for the policy on speed cameras to be reviewed.

The party quoted last Friday's issue of The Times where traffic experts Hugh Arnett, Simon Micallef Stafrace and TV personality Tonio Darmanin had appealed to the government to review the way speed cameras were used. The cameras were described as being cash cows.

The new speed limits where the speed cameras were installed was described as absurd and likely to cause more problems.

It would be better for minister Austin Gatt to listen to what the experts and the people were saying, rather than launching attacks which led nowhere, the PL said.