Prague - MPs´ decision to forbid private companies and police officers to monitor car speeding surprised and annoyed a number mayors. According to the new law, only the national police will be allowed to measure speed on the roads.
"Mayors are not happy about this decision. We will try everything possible to change it," says Jaromír Jech, deputy director of the Union of Towns and Municipalities of the Czech Republic. Their first chance is to lobby in the Senate that will be deciding on the new law next.
"The national police is not able to be in every single dangerous spot. That is why in the past municipalities obtained this competence; they bought the necessary equipment and signed contracts with private companies. And now everything is supposed to change again. We are just trying to get rid of cars and motorcycles driving like crazy inside the cities," says Jech.
Politicians were not able to find consensus even inside their parties. Jan Klas, MP for the Civic democrats (ODS) came with the proposal, interior minister for ODS Ivan Langer opposed it. At the end, the view of municipalities abusing speed tickets for their profits prevailed over everything.
No bullying, less casualties
The cities´ authorities decline accusations of being greedy and bullying the drivers just for their own profits. They point out that it was them who invested millions of crowns in the necessary equipment.
Prague mayor´s first deputy Rudolf Blažka points out that last year the number of death casualties of car accidents fell by 41 percent.
"If we compare the complete numbers for 2007 and 2008 (January through May) we see that traffic law violations decreased by 25 percent in measured areas which is a major decline. Even more so, because the number of cars in measured areas went up by eight million between 2007 and 2008," says Blažek.
Ministry of transportation looks at it differently. In the beginning of June, his ministry announced that collecting fines turned into a good business for the municipalities. Statistics have shown that forty percent of all violators were speeding only by less than twenty kilometer per hour.
Officers do not agree with the approach of the ministry. "We are responding to specific requests from parts of towns where the traffic situation is really bad. If we are there drivers at least obey the laws for some time, said Denisa Kapitančiková.
