7/11/2016
France, Germany: Speed Cameras Smashed and BurnedSpeed cameras in France and Germany were disabled by crashes and fire last week.
In Herne, Germany, vigilantes set fire to a recently installed speed camera on Thursday morning. According to Westdeutschen Allgemeinen Zeitung, the automated ticketing machine on Sodinger Strasse 553 had been installed in mid-March. It was completely destroyed in the blaze.
The speed camera on the RN57 in Vosges, France failed to prevent an accident on Thursday. A Peugeot 307 rammed the automated ticketing machine in Vincey, knocking it out of commission, Vosges Matin reported. On Sunday, vigilantes used burning tires to completely destroy a speed camera in Boeux, according to L'Eveil. The same automated ticketing machine on the RD906 had been previously attacked in May 2016, March 2015 and November 2014. The same fate befell the speed camera in Maiche at around the same time, Est Republicain reported, although the vigilante placed a helpful sign in front of the camera advertising the location of a nearby restaurant. Green spraypaint was the weapon of choice in Mazures where, according to L'Union, the speed camera on the D988 was put out of service with white paint.