Maintenance of Speed Cameras

I would like to request a FOI disclosure which is basically to understand the annual money payments to Serco and Gatso for the calibration and maintenance of cameras, staff training, and how the speed is calculated as part of the secondary check.

1. How many fixed post Gatso (FPG) and Gatso Red Light(GRL) cameras were in use, on an annual basis, by your partnership in the past three financial years?
2. For these cameras, for the past three financial years, what were the total cost amounts paid(TCAP) for the annual calibration of these cameras, identifying the TCAP to intermediate agents such as Serco and the company Gatsometer B.V, and the additional amounts of V.A.T added ?
3. Please confirm if the partnership have ownership of these cameras, paid in full, or any other arrangement.
4. Please confirm if the calibration contracts (CC) have been agreed for a fixed term with break penalty clauses or negotiated annually, if the CC are inclusive of a greater contract regarding maintenance, and who signed the contracts on behalf of the partnership.
5. After the cameras have been returned following calibration please confirm if, apart from the calibration certificate, Gatsometer B.V provide a report on any faults detected and items replaced and, if so, please identify the items, including batteries, that have required replacement.
6. After calibration, please confirm if the cameras are returned with a shutter speed of two photographs at intervals of 0.5 seconds, and if your Camera Enforcement Officers make any adjustments to the shutter speed or flash setting prior to reinstallation and, if so, what are the setting adjustments?
7. Regarding the secondary check viewing, please advise how the viewing staff are trained for their task, who does the training, are certificates of completion provided, and are the staff given post training assessments or hard copy reference documentation.  Is the work of the viewing staff audited or reviewed at intervals?
8. For FPG please confirm the distance between the calibration lines on the road which are part of the secondary check, so that one can calculate the speed if five lines are passed.
9. As a matter of interest, why do you call yourselves Cheshire Constabulary and not Cheshire Police?

Additional clarification re Q2 received 20/09/2011
The purpose behind Q2 of my recent FOI is to calculate the unit cost of calibrating one Gatso Speed and one Gatso Red light camera.  If it is troublesome for you to add up the individual payments to Serco for calibration it will be acceptable to simply know the agreed calibration payment for each camera type over the three year period to assess the trend.

In accordance with section 1(1) (b) of the Act our response is provided below;

Please note: Cheshire Constabulary as part of the Cheshire Safer Roads Partnership carry out the day to day enforcement operations. The local highway authorities manage the camera site infrastructure including the calibration and maintenance. The Constabulary does not hold information relating to the maintenance costs. The details of the partnership and camera sites can be found on the following web site: My Safer Roads

The Cheshire Safer Roads Partnership will soon be superseded by the Cheshire Road Safety Group. Detailed proposals are underway for these new working arrangements.

1. This information is reasonably accessible to you by other means and is therefore exempt information in accordance with section 21 of the Freedom of Information Act. The number of sites within Cheshire is published on the website www.mysaferoads.org.uk , the information here also includes installations dates.
2. This information is not held by the Cheshire Constabulary, see note above.
3. See Note above.
4. This information is not held by the Cheshire Constabulary, see note above.
5. This information is not held by the Cheshire Constabulary, see note above. Additionally I am advised that Cheshire West and Chester Council would hold this particular information.
6. With a GATSOMETER BV TYPE 24AUS speed detection camera the time interval between the two exposures is operator set at an interval of 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9 or 1.0 secs. We always set for 0.5 secs
7. The staff are usually given two days training with an experienced viewer. There is no certificate issued as the secondary check is very simple to do. eg Magistrates carry out the secondary check for themselves with no previous experience, by counting the number of lines / distance covered, and comparing it to a chart with the relevant speeds already calculated. There is to our knowledge, no manufacturers/ suppliers course for viewing. Every offence is secondary checked. The secondary check is not our primary evidence, it is only there to verify that the speed recorded is correct. At court we rely on the camera, not the secondary check. We don't carry out any post training assessments as the process is very simple.
8. There is no laid down distance and can vary by both area and site, however these distances are recorded in order to corroborate the primary evidence. We use either 5 feet or 2 metres between the lines.
9. This is not really a valid question under FOI. However if you check any encyclopedia and dictionary you will find the meaning and historical usage of the words.