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    How low-level speeding fines are filling this state's coffers

    Low-level speeding infringements may attract the smallest fines, but they accounted for more than half of Queensland's speeding revenue.

    Jordan Mulach

    Jordan Mulach

    Contributor

    Jordan Mulach

    Jordan Mulach

    Contributor

    The Queensland Government became $337 million richer last financial year thanks in part to fines from speed cameras, with a vast majority of motorists pinged for going less than 11km/h above the limit.

    In the Department of Transport and Main Roads’ Annual Report for the 2023-24 financial year, the State Government announced it made $464.3 million from its Camera Detected Offence Program (CDOP) across the 12-month period.

    Factoring in administrative and operational costs of $127.3 million, the state ended up with a $337 million profit – though the figure could’ve been much higher.

    The CDOP was initially estimated to bring in $503.6 million throughout the 2023-24 financial year, though this figure was revised in May to $409 million – $55 million less than the final figure, according to the report.

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    The financial year prior (2022-23) it collected $465.8 million from the CDOP, itself up 70 per cent on the $274.5 million collected in 2021-22.

    In total, 608,794 speeding fines were handed out throughout the 2023-24 financial year, with mobile speed cameras accounting for the vast majority – 74 per cent to be exact – of the infringement detectors.

    Fixed speed cameras were next, responsible for issuing 24 per cent of speeding fines, while the state’s point-to-point average speed cameras accounted for slightly less than two per cent of the figure.

    It may come as no surprise that more than half of all motorists who received a speeding fine were travelling at no more than 10km/h above the posted speed limit, with 63 per cent of infringements handed out for this offence.

    More than a third of motorists caught speeding were travelling between 11km/h and 20km/h in excess of the limit, with the remaining few fines split between the three categories of 21-30km/h, 31-40km/h and 40km/h-plus.

    The state’s point-to-point speed cameras served up an interesting figure, being the only mode of detection which didn’t see the most fines for the lowest threshold, with a surprising 77 per cent of motorists instead being caught between 11-20km/h above the limit.

    Speed above posted limit1-10km/h11-20km/h21-30km/h31-40km/h40km/h+ Combined
    Mobile speed camera fines279,700157,25412,5811959991452,485 (74%)
    Fixed speed camera fines101,99940,3543047670339146,409 (24%)
    Point-to-point speed camera fines1590762155993379900 (2%)
    Total fines383,289 (63%)205,229 (33.7%)16,187 (0.27%)2722 (0.004%)1367 (0.002%)608,794
    Total fine revenue (approx.)$118.4m$95.2m$11.2m$3.2m$2.4m$230.4m

    In May, the Queensland Government revised its estimated revenue for the CDOP in 2024-25 from $533.7 million to $466.5 million, however given how much it overshot the lower figure last financial year, it could still take in more than $500 million.

    Despite the State Government hailing the decrease as a sign of changing behaviours, Queensland’s rolling 12-month road toll is up 1.4 per cent on last year, currently standing at 288 deaths to the end of August 2024.

    MORE: Are speed, mobile phone cameras finally changing behaviour? MORE: Queensland motorists to face record fines MORE: Hold onto your wallets: More cameras coming to Queensland roads MORE: Hidden school zone speed cameras prove lucrative in first year

    Jordan Mulach

    Jordan Mulach

    Contributor

    Jordan Mulach

    Contributor

    Born and raised in Canberra, Jordan has worked as a full-time automotive journalist since 2021, being one of the most-published automotive news writers in Australia before joining CarExpert in 2024.

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