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Summarised by Centrist
Five speed cameras have been destroyed or damaged across Auckland in the past two weeks, placing the city squarely within what appears to be a wider international backlash against automated traffic enforcement.
On February 2, a camera on Coatesville Riverhead Highway was cut clean off its pole in broad daylight.
Police “responded to reports, but the offender had already left the scene,” according to Waitematā Road Policing Manager Inspector Jason Edwards. The device, which had issued thousands of tickets since a speed limit reduction, toppled to the ground in pieces.
Days later, a second camera on Matakana Road was spray-painted black. NZTA acknowledged the vandalism but said the camera remained operational.
The Coatesville device had generated approximately $3.7 million across 36,000 tickets in its first six months after the speed limit dropped from 100 km/h to 60 km/h. Rodney local board member Geoff Upson, standing beside the severed pole, described the camera as “the revenue collector,” adding: “Good news, it’s safe for you to drive 61 km/h on your way to work tomorrow.”
Police have said speed cameras are “proven to be effective in reducing deaths and injuries on the roads where they are operating.” Auckland Transport says rural roads with reduced speed limits saw a 71 per cent reduction in deaths and 25 per cent fewer serious injuries in the first 18 months.
In the UK, activists in London have destroyed more than 1,000 ULEZ cameras since 2023. In Toronto, a single camera issued over 66,000 tickets before being repeatedly vandalised. In Virginia, lawmakers have advanced bills to eliminate speed and red-light cameras after concerns they operate as “cash grabs.”
NZTA has called the local attacks “extremely disappointing” and confirmed replacement poles are on the way.
