A new camera system designed to clamp down on speeding motorists may be rolled out across Northern Ireland, police said today.
The PSNI wants to introduce fixed cameras that measure average speed over busy sections of road as part of a clampdown on speeding motorists.
Cameras were being unveiled today on the Belfast to Dublin road near Newry.
Assistant Chief Constable Roy Toner said: "We are looking at other stretches of roads where it's suitable. It is likely that in the future we will have others," he said.
"It is early days in terms of where we site them but we will be looking at this over the next 18 months to two years."
The Speed Enforcement Camera System (Specs) will measure the average speed of vehicles on two parts of the north-south route.
They force motorists to watch their speed for a four-mile distance over one of the busiest and most dangerous roads in Northern Ireland.
Drivers from the Republic of Ireland should also beware, as fixed penalty fines imposed in the North will soon be payable in the South under European legislation.
The equipment will be installed between Sheepbridge and the Mourne Country roundabout and between the Cloghogue roundabout and the border.
A total of 75 people have been killed on Northern Ireland's roads this year.
Stretches where the Newry cameras are sited have seen 15 deaths and 32 serious injuries in the past five years.
Newry and Mourne has one of the highest road fatality rates in Northern Ireland.
The PSNI has been in talks with An Garda Siochána about improving detection equipment south of the border, but a spokeswoman in Dublin could not say when fresh measures would be introduced.
Similar programmes to Specs are in use in England, Scotland and Wales as well as other parts of Europe.
Mr Toner said Specs had a track record of forcing people to moderate their speed.
"It is a more appropriate system for the objective of reducing people's speed as we have a longer stretch of road over which we measure.
"One of the difficulties with static cameras is that they only moderate people's speed at that particular point.
"This system produces fewer detections because people can see the cameras and slow themselves down."
He added the cameras were highly visible and said they were not designed to catch motorists through stealth.
The senior officer said the Newry scheme cost stg£500,000.
Alliance Party Regional Development Spokesman Kieran McCarthy welcomed the step.
"If these cameras help in reducing speed on this road, I would hope that they are introduced elsewhere to improve road safety in other parts of Northern Ireland," he said.
"It's good to see that this new system can monitor speeds over longer distances, so hopefully it will be effective in deterring people from speeding."
PA