The majority of camera sites in Greater Manchester use Gatso cameras, permanently positioned next to the carriageway. The housings are rear facing and the housings are painted yellow to make them visible to motorists from a distance.

• A radar, in the camera, measure the speed of the vehicles as it travels along the road
• If the vehicle's speed is above the preset threshold (eg. 30mph) then the camera takes two pictures.
• These pictures provide a secondary check of the vehicle's speed as they show the position of the car in relation to the check marks on the road and allow enforcement staff to determine which vehicle is exceeding the speed limit if the photographs show vehicles in multiple lanes.

The cameras themselves are rotated among the housings, allowing us to target resources where they are most needed and provide best coverage of the road network. It is safest to assume that any camera can be live at any time.

GATSO – Digital

This equipment is digital and does not require the use of film. A radar in the camera measures the speed of the vehicle as it travels along the road. If the vehicles speed is above the set threshold (ie 30MPH) then the camera takes two photographs 0.5 seconds apart.

These pictures provide a secondary check of the vehicles speed as they show the position of the vehicle in relation to the secondary check marks on the road and this allows the viewer to determine which of the vehicles has been speeding in the frame. The time and date will be recorded with each image. These images are down loaded direct to the viewing office for processing via a standard ADSL line.

There is also a secondary pole that comes with the new digital software. It sits approximately ten metres in front of the camera and its sole purpose is to direct the flash onto a certain part of the road so that when the pictures are received back at the office they are at a high standard of viewing quality.

Compliance with these protocols and procedures has no bearing upon enforcement of offences detected by the use of the safety cameras, and non-compliance with them by the Partnership or representative of the Partnership does not provide any mtigation or nor defence for an alleged offence committed under current UK law.