Comparing 2009 and 2011 attitudes, motivations and beliefs related to speeding and speed enforcement in NSW

Despite several initiatives successfully reducing speed-related trauma in NSW, speed surveys and attitudinal research shows that a large proportion of drivers continue to speed. In 2009 a quantitative study examined driver attitudes toward a range of speeding issues including the social acceptability of speeding, and the acceptability of different enforcement methods. In 2011 a quantitative telephone survey of 1,500 NSW drivers measured changes since the 2009 study, and explored other speeding issues of emerging interest. The 2009 study showed that speeding was not yet socially unacceptable, except in extreme cases. Findings from the 2011 study suggest that the situation may be gradually improving, with small reductions in the perceived acceptability of speeding, albeit only in lower speed zones. There has also been a shift towards drivers reporting exceeding the speed limit by a smaller average margin, and by a smaller maximum margin. Consistent with 2009 findings, the 2011 study identified that there continues to be a high level of support for existing speed enforcement practices in NSW, including mobile speed cameras, as well as practices in other jurisdictions. Findings show that there is more community support for marked mobile speed cameras than for fixed speed cameras not in school zones. However, there still remains a perception of revenue raising. Overall, findings suggest that more can be done to reaffirm the safety benefits of speed camera enforcement, and appropriate actions based on these findings have been incorporated in the NSW Speed Camera Strategy.