Wallonia is pressing ahead with its plan against excessive speeding on its roads with the installation of 11 new speed-control units in high-risk areas, the Minister for Road Safety, Carlo Di Antonio, announced on Tuesday. The initiative, known as Plan Radars, was developed against the background of a 7.7% increase in infractions related to speed, which went from 779,623 in 2016 to 837,885 in 2017.
The 11 speed-control units, in some of which police will install cinemometers [speed-measuring equipment], will be installed in Libramont, Sainte-Ode, La Louvière (2), Mouscron (5), Genappe and Nivelles. Since the month of March, 31 new speed-control units, including four (4) at traffic lights, have been installed in Wallonia and others will be set up in the coming months.
"It’s not about using them as speed traps but rather about making the areas safe,” the minister recalled.
According to data published by the Federal Police, speed-related infractions increased by 7.5% between 2016 and 2017 on Wallonia’s roads. Most of them, 71%, had to do with exceeding speed limits by 21km/h. In 21% of the cases, speeds 21% to 31% above the limit0 had been registered, while 6% were related to speeds that were 31%-40% over the limit.
Two percent (2%) of the infractions were committed by people caught driving at speeds that were more than 40 km/hr over the speed limit.
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The Brussels Times
