A55: Drivers have their say on speed cameras at Rhuallt Hill

On May 3 this year, Traffic Wales announced that average speed cameras would be installed under a trial period along Rhuallt Hill's westbound carriageway which is a "road traffic collision hot spot along the A55/A494 corridor" and sees "high volumes of excessive speed."

The intention of the trial was to achieve a reduction in high speed collisions westbound, "thus improving safety, reducing the disruption brought about by such incidents and roadworks required to repair infrastructure."

The trial, which was "not an intervention designed simply to catch motorists speeding," and did not result in prosecutions, was originally predicted to last six to 12 months.

But Traffic Wales Tweeted yesterday, only four weeks after the trial started: "Rhuallt average speed cameras are due to be activated this week. Please adhere to the speed limits. We're working towards no speed related incidents, not more speeding tickets."

Every day, thousands of motorists take to the Rhuallt Hill stretch, which connects Flintshire and Denbighshire, and is a vital connection between the North Wales coast and the North West of England.

In a poll conducted by the Leader on the A55 Traffic, Incidents, Information Facebook group, on overwhelming amount of people voted a thumbs up at the average speed cameras going live this week.

My midday yesterday, over 500 people had their say, more than 300 of which said it was a good idea, compared to the 85 who thought it was an "awful idea" and the 100 others who were not phased by the new scheme.

David Tomlinson, of Old Colwyn, said: "It's a good idea really. Cars go down that hill too fast. The ones who do complain would be the ones who normally complain about the Go Safe cameras."

Alison Williams, of Buckley, said: "It's a great idea, there have been far too many accidents on that hill, especially caravans going down too fast. It's definitely not a cash cow as they are boldly there for drivers to see.

"It's a driver's choice now if they want to speed plus there have been a lot of accidents there. It might stop some bank holiday crashes now."

Mandy Thomas, of Birkenhead, said: "Much as I loathe speed cameras in general, as you can momentarily get caught by mistake as you're watching the road, the average speed cameras are a good idea - especially on that hill.

"They're not going to catch you out if you've accidentally crept a few miles per hour over the limit as you can just slow down a bit. I personally think the limit should be 60 on that hill."

Although the majority are in favour of the speed cameras, a number of drivers have voiced their concern over the efficiency of the new measures which aims to tackle speeding and speed related incidents.

Andy Parry, of Dwygyfylchi, said although Rhuallt Hill is an "accident blackspot" he can't help being a "little sceptical" about yet another speed camera scheme.

He said: "The standard of driving on the A55 as a whole is atrocious, but apart from the regular speed traps in Colwyn Bay and now Rhuallt, there is no visible deterrent.

"If the authorities were serious about road safety, then a visible police presence would do far more to discourage dangerous driving than just going for the easy option of fining drivers who stray a little over the speed limit.

"There is definitely an over reliance on speed cameras these days and a need for increased police patrols on the A55."

Mr Parry believes there are other options to encourage drivers to stick to the speed limit, such as the signs which display drivers' speed and flash slow down alerts.

He said speeding is not the only cause of accidents: "Meanwhile away from those cameras the speeding, tail gating, poor lane discipline, aggressive driving, not using indicators are all causing accidents which continues unpunished."

Tom Penman, of Mostyn, agrees that reckless driving is a concerning issue. He said: "Just seems like another way to make money. The problem isn’t speed on that hill, it’s reckless driving.

"I work in St Asaph so I go down it every day and most of the accidents I see are on a Friday evening and usually involves a caravan. Most mornings the traffic flows about at about 80mph and I can’t see the problem with that."

Daisy Johanne, of Blaenau Ffestiniog, said: "The issue on Rhuallt Hill isn’t speed, it’s distance between cars. If they’d put chevrons on the floor and enforced a safe braking distance, it would be far more effective than a speed camera that is going to make people burn their brakes out by having to brake the whole way down the hill. Plus it’s damaging to the brake discs in cars as when they overheat from prolonged use, they warp, making the car judder."

Mike Parry said: "Speed limits for a car towing is 60mph on the A55, so there is no way these cameras can detect the fact that vehicles are towing, so they will still be able to do 70mph undetected which defeats the point of the speed cameras."

Some believe there's a need for gantry signs over the road dictating speed restriction for each lane.

Sarah Jones, of Bangor, said: "I honestly don't think speed cameras are the solution to this problem. I think they should have the signs above the road that tell you when a lane is closed or speed reduction is in place - then the speeds can be controlled better during poor condition."

Other suggestions include a "redesign of the road itself" to accommodate the sharp incline on the westbound carriageway.

Daniel Horner, of Glan Conwy, said: "There's too much braking already happening rather than working off the gears. Maybe, dare I say, make it into a motorway or at least a usable hard shoulder in heavy traffic? The only thing I can think of is the fear of being penalised might increase bad driving habits such as braking harshly if accidentally going over the limit as it's a downhill."