Article from: www.thenewspaper.com/news/47/4740.asp

7/6/2015

Belgium, France: Attacks On Speed Cameras Documented
Forty-eight speed cameras were attacked in Belgium last year. In France, four out of five speed cameras have been hit at least once.

The public's distaste for speed cameras is costing the Belgian government. In an answer provided to parliament on Thursday, Belgium's minister for mobility and public works, Ben Weyts, documented the number of times that the country's citizens have destroyed or defaced a speed camera. Last year, 48 cameras in total were intentionally damaged. Not counting lost ticketing revenue, this cost the government 171,997 euros (US $189,781). Of this amount, 25,648 euros (US $28,293) were spent cleaning off spraypaint. A total of thirteen cameras had to be completely replaced. Attacks were most popular in West Flanders.

France now has nearly 4500 fixed and mobile speed cameras that generated 800 million euros (US $878 million) worth of citations in 2013. According to the environmental group Acqualys, about eighty percent of the country's fixed photo radar devices have been set on fire or spraypainted at least once.