Dangerous driving given the red light in Wollongong

Road Safety in Wollongong will receive a boost with the installation of a new red-light speed camera at the intersection of Princes Highway and Mangerton Road.    

The camera will be switched on Thursday 7 December (about six weeks later than expected due to unforeseen construction delays). 

Sally Webb, Deputy Secretary of Safety, Environment and Regulation at Transport for NSW said the new camera will target red-light running and speeding and is scheduled to begin operating from 7 December 2023 to improve safety for all road users. 

“We know that running red lights can lead to serious T-bone crashes or vehicles hitting pedestrians,” Ms Webb said. 

“About 30 per cent of red-light speed camera offences are from people running red lights so we are addressing this problem head-on. 

“In the five years from 2018 to 2022, seven crashes occurred at this intersection resulting in a total of eight people being injured including three who were seriously injured.” 

Road crashes claimed the lives of 281 people on NSW roads last year with speed the biggest killer. 

Research shows that red-light speed cameras dramatically reduce the number of serious crashes on our roads. 

“The most recent speed camera review found fatal and serious injury crashes fell by 38 per cent at red-light speed camera locations, and pedestrian casualties fell by almost 66 per cent,” Ms Webb said. 

The new camera will operate in warning mode for one month during which time drivers caught speeding or running red lights will be sent a warning letter to encourage them to change their behaviour.  

Fines and demerit points will be sent to offending drivers at the end of this period. 

Fines from red-light speed cameras go directly into the Community Road Safety Fund to deliver targeted road safety initiatives in NSW. 

To sign up for alerts to changes in camera locations, visit www.saferroadsnsw.com.au.