Speedtraps at night

vector

While they are possible in a continuously lit area
(for example a 50kmph as you enter a town) are they ever found on dark roads? Even on a dual carriageway if the forces of law enforcement parked in a convenient central crossover area surely they couldn't read your front number plate? unless their camera has a powerful flash?

oleras

vector wrote:

While they are possible in a continuously lit area
(for example a 50kmph as you enter a town) are they ever found on dark roads? Even on a dual carriageway if the forces of law enforcement parked in a convenient central crossover area surely they couldn't read your front number plate? unless their camera has a powerful flash?

They would only need to read the plate if you kept going.....lol...... on a more serious note, i was driving on a main road about 5-6 years ago...... about half 12 at night, doing 1 or 2 miles over the limit.....ok, 25 over the limit and as i came over a slight hill i got the crap scared out of me by a flashlight in the middle of the road waving me down......didnt even have a hi viz vest on !!....... stopped me, had a small chat and gave me the 50 pound ticket and sent me on my merry way...so they do pull at night !!!

maidhc

vector wrote:

While they are possible in a continuously lit area
(for example a 50kmph as you enter a town) are they ever found on dark roads? Even on a dual carriageway if the forces of law enforcement parked in a convenient central crossover area surely they couldn't read your front number plate? unless their camera has a powerful flash?

The Gatso vans have 2x halogen lamp enclosures full of what look like Infrared LEDs.

Redshift

maidhc wrote:

The Gatso vans have 2x halogen lamp enclosures full of what look like Infrared LEDs.

Correct:
I used to service / repair the equipment in the Gatso vans and they are all fully night operation capable. Never known any of them to do it though:) and they can work on either direction.

Boggle

Rarely known fact: While the gardai can work at night, they are unable to work in cold, wet weather due to, err... "technical difficulties" - i.e. it being too cold and wet!??!

saobh_ie

oleras wrote:

on a more serious note, i was driving on a main road about 5-6 years ago...... about half 12 at night, doing 1 or 2 miles over the limit.....ok, 25 over the limit and as i came over a slight hill i got the crap scared out of me by a flashlight in the middle of the road waving me down......didnt even have a hi viz vest on !!....... stopped me, had a small chat and gave me the 50 pound ticket and sent me on my merry way...so they do pull at night !!!

I had a similar experience in Northern Ireland, quite early in the morning with a low sun some dude dressed in dark clothes came walking out from the far side of the road towards me waving at me to slow down. He had a friend similarly dressed and they were standing beside your average car.

I moved right over to the nearside kerb and slowed down a tad and then fecking hoofed it just as I reached him (I just though he was a crazy person) but nope, as I zoomed past accelerating through the speed limit I recognised him for a uniformed PSNI dude.

I thought about stopping but it was too late for that and I was only a couple of miles from the border so I decided to hoof it. I suspect I was speeding and he was waving me to slow down and not pull in because I wasn't being over the top about it, having responded to his wave by whacking open the throttle stopping to apoligise probaly wouldn't have been the brightest move.

Nearly pissed myself through when I came screaming around a corner and found a Garda checkpoint on the road.

Hotblack Desiato

lucky you didn't get a round in the back of the head...