Ballarat father Dale Addinsall has installed a video camera in his car to publicly shame people who speed through 40km/h school zones.
FOR more than a year now, Ballarat father Dale Addinsall has taken the law into his own hands.
By installing a video camera in his car, he hopes to publicly shame people who speed through 40km/h school zones.
He says the problem of people speeding is on the rise.
And worst of all, he believes the worst offenders are parents themselves. Compulsory 40km/h speed zones will be re-introduced today, as term three of the school year begins.
There is no doubt Mr Addinsall will be on the roads again, trying to catch people breaking the law.
“People just don’t take any notice of the rules. It doesn’t matter where you go, it’s happening,” he said.
“The biggest culprits are the parents themselves. I bet if it was one of their kids they would slow down.”
Currently uploading videos of speeding drivers online, Mr Addinsall intends to purchase a GPS-linked camera, which he hopes he will be able to pass on to police for prosecution.
“I can justify it, if I save one child’s life it has all been worth it,” he said.
Issues relating to school zones have often raised their heads in Ballarat. In 2010, The Courier highlighted a section of the Midland Highway in Sebastopol where the speed limit changes nine times in less than two kilometres during school times.
The state government is currently reviewing locations where speed limits change repeatedly.
Ballarat Highway Patrol Senior Sergeant Cleary said there had been a noted improvement in safety for children since the laws came in nine years ago.
He said police continued to catch drivers who sped through school zones.
Senior Sergeant Cleary felt the rules had been “extremely effective” and had been crucial in protecting children’s safety.
“Unfortunately we do detect people who are travelling at excessive speeds through the school zones and that is a real worry,” he said.
Although not noticing more speeding drivers in any particular part of Ballarat, police say areas where speed zones are normally higher can prove hazardous for pedestrians and drivers.
Speed limits outside schools are 40km/h during the hours of 8am and 9.30am, and 2.30pm to 4pm.