Death toll slashed by half on the killer A77

Oct 31 2007 Ayrshire Post

THE death toll has been halved on the notorious A77 in the past two years.

Safety experts have revealed the latest figures – two years after Scotland’s longest speed trap was opened.

The number of people injured has fallen by a fifth.

Hugh McCafferty is chairman of the A77 Safety Group, which compiled the figures.

He said: “We know speed often plays a major part in both the cause of accidents and the resulting severity.

“This would appear to be borne out by the interim figures.”

He added: “The most important element in road safety is always the road users.

“With the aid of SPECS, road users have improved the culture of driving on the A77, and for that they should be commended.”

The SPECS camera system covers a 32 mile stretch of the road between Bogend Toll north of Ayr to Ardwell Bay south of Girvan.

It calculates the average speed covered by vehicles between cameras.

Mr McCafferty explained: “The effectiveness of the system will be fully assessed three years after data is available.

“As with all safety cameras, the aim of the SPECS camera system is to encourage drivers to keep within the speed limits and not become speeding offenders in the first place.

“Since the system was installed there has been a huge drop in the numbers of vehicles travelling at excessive speeds. This has been evidenced by the low number of offenders with just 320 people issued with notices of intended prosecution over the entire length, reflecting a high level of public acceptance in systems of this nature.”