Warning Others About Mobile Speed Cameras...Right or Wrong?

[Bods]

It's all in the title really...there is a mobile speed camera van on my way to work quite frequently. Some drivers flash others to warn them...some don't. I'm in two minds about it. This particular van parks on a long straight stretch of road and is quite visible on the approach from both sides so it's hardly a 'trap'.

I'm personally not keen on people flashing a warning as it's a bit distracting, and generally it slows the traffic down as there's always one person in front who thinks 'crikey...there's no speed limit signs so I'd better do 30 just in case...' (it's a 60 road). Most importantly, if people are speeding then they need to face the potential consequences...

But then again, the 'supposed' point of cameras is not to collect fines but ensure speeds are lowered (ha ha ha) so drivers warning other drivers to slow down has the desired effect, at least on that bit of road!

[bloodycheap]

I tend to warn lorry drivers and van drivers who have more to lose for perhaps being a few mph over the speed limit. Generally i won't flash anyone else.

[ccollins108]

Anyone who thinks that it is morally wrong to warn people about a speedtrap is unlikely to win any prizes in moral philosophy, I suggest. The 'point', officially at least, of cameras, speed traps, etc, is to slow people down, not to raise funds by simply fining people who have already committed an offence - presumably the rationale behind this is that breaking the speedlimit is always unsafe and has the potential to cause an accident. Therefore, if warning people of a speedtrap serves to slow them down, they are only helping to ensure that the 'trap' actually does its job... slowing people down and preventing accidents, rather than waiting for the accident to happen and then saying... you broke the law, we're going to fine you, ban you, etc, etc...

Sorry, from a moral point of view, it seems pretty obvious to me! By the way, if you like to feel righteous when you see someone get flashed by a speed camera, because 'they've broken the law' then you should learn just how easy it is to get off a ticket, anyhow.