- After three lean years, revenues from speed cameras are exploding again in France
- In 20 years of existence, 2022 is the third best year on record
- And 2023 could well sign a new record in terms of money generated
Automatic speed cameras have been multiplying on the roads for several long years now, in urban areas as well as in the countryside. Speed control devices that contribute to better road safety, and which obviously bring millions of euros each year to the state, which also invests massively in the deployment of new speed cameras. According Radars-Autoin 2023, the sums committed will reach 332.8 million euros “almost the 2022 record set at 334 million euros“. But how much money does radar generate? A lot…
A record year 2022 for speed cameras in France
Indeed, based on a recent report by the Court of Auditors, in 2022, automatic speed cameras generated a total of 707 million euros. This is the third best amount ever recorded in France, after 2016 and (especially) 2017. Indeed, 6 years ago, speed cameras generated 824 million euros, to which it was then necessary to add the revenue from increased fines, totaling 1.01 billion euros.
In 2022, the radars obviously flashed more than in previous years, in particular 2019, 2020 and to a lesser extent 2021, three “lean” years, the latter having been marked by yellow vests and the covid pandemic. Still according to Radars-Auto, this increase should continue this year 2023, thanks to more than 200 additional automatic radars compared to last year (for a total of 5,600), without forgetting the privatized radar cars.
© Unsplash / CHUTTERSNAP
Of course, the money generated by the radars is not “net”, and if they bring in hundreds of millions of euros, the State is also forced to pay millions of euros to ensure the maintenance of the radars. automatic (about 45 million euros), but also to repair acts of vandalism, the amount of which is falling, but the latter has not been communicated.
In total, in 2022, expenses related to speed cameras in France will be around 187 million euros. Added to this are the costs associated with various IT services, communication campaigns, mailings, etc. This year, the old-generation section radars will also be replaced by turret radars, but also by new models, which will require less maintenance… and will flash more.
It should also be remembered that last March, the government site detailed the method for calculating the so-called “technique”, ie the margin of error with which the recorded speed is observed, and whose tolerance is slightly different from that which is generally believed.
