Oxfordshire County Council set to turn speed cameras back on

It has been revealed that Oxfordshire’s speed cameras are set to be turned back on just three months after they were switched off following the withdrawal of £600,000 in funding due to budget cuts.

The decision by Oxfordshire County Council to turn the cameras off with effect from 1 August attracted criticism from safety campaigners, who highlighted increased traffic speeds at certain locations in the county previously covered by the cameras, as reported on road.cc.

Now, however, it is being reported by BBC Oxford News that the county council has held talks with Thames Valley police and is "close to an agreement" to have the cameras brought back into operation.

An Oxfordshire County Council spokesman told the BBC: "We've been in discussion with our partners at Thames Valley Police and we're close to an agreement to have the cameras switched back on in the future.

"We look forward to being able to reveal the detail of that agreement in future weeks."

A Thames Valley Police spokeswoman also confirmed that the force was "close to agreeing a new arrangement" with the county council that would result in "safety cameras [being] switched back on across Oxfordshire".

"Speed continues to be one of the main risk factors on the roads, and the safety cameras form an important of tackling driver behaviour,” she continued.

"We have been in regular communication with Oxfordshire County Council since the cameras were withdrawn and welcome their decision to support a new model," the spokeswoman added.