Road Angel UK

There are many types of speedtrap on the British roads, some are static some are mobile, some are radar, some are laser, some you can detect and some you can't.. Here are the most common types. If you are in any doubt about what you need to protect against then call us and we will be happy to advise. 0161 355 1275

Gatso - Static - Radar
Gatso cameras are the most common type of speedtrap, the work by having a radar beam constantly checking for vehicles going through the speedtrap area at a speed above the threshold that has been set. If a vehicle goes through too quickly the Gatso camera will take 2 images a haf a second apart. It's the radar that will check the actual speed, the white lines in the road are there for the camera to take an image and prove that you where speeding by showing how many white lines had been crossed during the half a second between the photos. These types of camera used to use an 800 frame film and needed to be regularly serviced so it was only about one in ten that where active at any one time. Now some of them are being linked to a digital system so an image can be immediately sent electronically.

SPECS - Static - OCR Average Speed
SPECS cameras can be in groups of 2 or more, these cameras are continuously taking images of vehicles travelling through the speedtrap area and sending the image to a sophisticated computer that can read number plate characters, if your number plate comes up at the next camera within the time threshold, the system knows you have been doing a high average speed.

Truvelo - Static - Pressure Sensors
These Truvelo cameras use pressure sensors in the road to be activated. A speeding car passing over the pressure sensors too quickly will activate the camera to take an image, this is forward facing so is capable of taking a picture including the driver.

Monitron - Static Induction Loops
Perhaps the rearward facing version of the Truvelo but originally designed as a red light camera and brought into service as a speed camera.

The Monitron is a rearward facing camera which uses sensors placed in the road, when a speeding vehicle passes over the sensors an image is taken with a digital camera. This is stored or transmitted within two minutes of the offense taking place depending on how the camera is attached the telephone network, Dial up, ISDN or ADSL.
The digital image data sent to the control room is also encrypted so that it cannot be tampered with or altered in anyway.
As this device does not use Radar or Laser to detect speeding vehicles it can only be picked up using a GPS device. This camera can be distinguised by its long pole, about 3 feet higher than Gatsos and its smaller head, about half the size of the Gatso.