TruCam II Hand-Held Speed Enforcement Cameras

Report reference number:: 069 – 23
Classification:: Official
Title of report:: TruCam II Hand-Held Speed Enforcement Cameras
Area of county / stakeholders affected:: Countywide
Report by:: David Stovell – Finance Business Partner
Date of report:: 15.05.23
Enquiries to:: [email protected] or [email protected]

1. Executive Summary

The Roads Policing team within the Operational Policing Command seeks approval to include the purchase of four TruCam II Hand-Held Speed Enforcement Cameras as an additional element of the capital programme which forms part of the current Medium Term Financial Strategy (MTFS).

The capital purchase cost for the cameras is £35,996. In addition, there are revenue budget consequences associated with the purchase which total £12,000 for the five-year period 2023/24 to 2027/28.

The Safer Essex Roads Partnership (SERP) Board has committed to fully funding the purchase of the cameras and their associated running costs such that there will be no additional financial burden on the MTFS during the operational lifetime of the cameras.

This decision report summarises how Essex Police will utilise the funding and seeks agreement from the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner to add the proposal to the capital programme, so as to facilitate the purchase of the speed enforcement cameras

2. Recommendations

That the Commissioner approves the proposal to add the purchase of four TruCam II Hand-Held Speed Enforcement Cameras to the capital programme , with a capital budget of £35,996 and a revenue consequences budget of £12,000. The full cost of £47,996 will be met in its entirety by SERP.
That the Commissioner approves the appropriation in 2023/24 of £12,000 of the SERP funding to earmarked reserves, representing the revenue consequences associated with operating the cameras in the five years following their purchase. This funding will subsequently be drawn down on an
annual basis at the rate of £2,400 per annum for the remaining operational life of the cameras

3. Background to the Proposal

The purchase of four TruCam II cameras is designed to support the increased focus on specific sites when road safety has been highlighted as a community concern. Use of the cameras will support additional partnership activity with Community Speed Watch groups. Ultimately, the successful application of the
cameras will contribute towards the county’s Vision Zero objective with regards to death or serious injury on the road network.
Essex Police has very limited numbers of TruCams currently, which are fully utilised by existing traffic units and Community Policing Teams. The proposed purchases will provide each of the three Enforcement Officers and a Road Safety Technician Officer with the ability to meet ongoing operational enforcement plans. The TruCam II is a key part of the equipment required by the staff for them to carry out their full role responsibilities. Each officer will be allocated the necessary equipment for them to execute road safety enforcement in agreed locations that meet the wider SERP requirements, and monthly reports will be fed back to all stakeholders on site performance.

4. Proposal and Associated Benefits

The proposal is to utilise prospective funding of £47,996 from SERP (£35,996 as a revenue contribution used to fund the capital programme and £12,000 revenue income) to purchase and maintain four TruCam II Hand-Held Speed Enforcement Cameras (£35,996 capital cost and £12,000 revenue cost over a five-year period).
The cameras would be managed alongside existing road safety equipment, including other enforcement cameras.
The operational benefits of the additional cameras include allowing users to provider greater road safety assurance to the wider public, particularly in areas where speeding motorists have been identified as an issue of concern. The equipment will increase the opportunity for detection and deterrence of offences
and offenders.
Further benefits associated with the purchase of the additional enforcement cameras include:

Providing improved road safety and a reduction in casualties in line with Vision
Zero.

Further enhancing the partnership with SERP and providing collaborative operational opportunities with community groups and Essex County Council(ECC).
Enhancing resilience to support SERP-related enforcement activities. It is further noted that increased utilisation of speed enforcement cameras may generate additional revenue from higher levels of attendance at National Driver Offending Retraining Scheme (NDORS) courses. However, this is not a focus of the proposal, rather the desire in utilising the additional cameras is to reduce casualty numbers by changing driver behaviour.

5. Options Analysis

The preferred option is that the Commissioner endorses the recommendations
contained within this decision report, allowing the project to be added to the capital
programme, whilst being fully funded by SERP.
The Commissioner could choose not to support this recommendation. However, if
that decision is taken there will be fewer speed enforcement cameras available to
support activities aimed at increasing road safety in the county. This would likely
have a negative impact of the ability of Essex Police to deliver a roads policing
service in line with the stated desires of reduced casualties, as identified in the
SERP road safety strategy Vision Zero.

6. Consultation and Engagement

The proposal has been supported by the Head of Operational Policing Command (OPC), Chief Superintendent Simon Anslow and endorsed by the OPC Chief Officer representative, ACC Nolan.
Consultation has also been held with the ECC SERP Manager

7. Strategic Links

This proposal supports one of the identified priorities in the Commissioner’s Police and Crime Plan, specifically to improve safety on the roads. This is incorporated in the road safety strategy Vision Zero.
Providing modern and efficient hand-held cameras is a key part of the equipment required by the staff for them to carry out their full role responsibilities. Thus, this proposal supports those members of staff, whilst the operational activities undertaken in using the cameras will often aid collaborative working with other partner agencies.

8. Police operational implications

The additional enforcement cameras will be invaluable assets supporting the desire to reduce the number of casualties on the road network. They will be deployed in conjunction with SERP-related road safety plans and enable greater emphasis to be placed on road safety in areas of particular concern to communities across Essex

9. Financial implications

The costs of the proposal, both capital and revenue, will be met in full through the SERP funding that will be provided for this purpose.
An additional £35,996 will need to be added to the capital programme to support the initial purchase of the cameras, which will be reflected in the 2023/24 to 2027/28 MTFS. This capital expenditure will be exactly matched by a revenue receipt of £35,996, which will be applied as a revenue contribution to fund the capital programme.

The cameras will not be classified as donated assets as the purchase will be made by Essex Police; they will be added to the force asset register as PFCC-owned assets.

Over the proposed operational life of the cameras there will be £12,000 additional revenue consequences to maintain, service and operate them. This revenue expenditure will be exactly matched by a revenue receipt of £12,000. To ensure the revenue receipt is matched on a year-on-year basis and recognised in
accordance with IFRS 15. The revenue receipt will be appropriated and drawn down on an annual basis at a rate of £2,400 per annum for each of the five years of planned operational life.

If the Commissioner endorses this proposal, there will be a net-nil financial impact on Essex Police for the five-year planned operational life of the cameras (in respect of both capital and revenue budgets).

The application of SERP funding for the purchase and ongoing management of the cameras will have no direct financial impact on the capital programme across the five-year MTFS period. However, if the cameras are replaced at the end of their useful operational life and that requires budgetary resource to be set aside, we will apply for the funding from a future MTFS cycle, as would be the case with the replacement of any other asset of this type.

10. Legal Implications

There are no specific legal implications associated with the recommendations contained within this decision report.

11 Staffing Implications

The proposed fully funded purchase of the enforcement cameras will provide the necessary equipment that enables the Enforcement Officers and Road Safety Technician Officer to fully undertake the roles for which they have been employed.
There are no other specific staffing implications associated with the recommendations contained within this decision report.

12. Equality and Diversity implications

There are no equality, diversity and inclusion implications associated with the request to endorse the recommendations contained within this decision report. There will be no disadvantages to people with protected characteristic

13. Risks and Mitigations

The only identified risk to the force in proceeding with this proposal is if the equipment was not used i.e. no enforcement activity was undertaken. However, given that enforcement is a key element of the role, this scenario is deemed highly unlikely and thus the risk is mitigated.

14. Governance Boards

This proposal has been supported within the command structure of the OPC and endorsed by Chief Officer Group member ACC Nolan.

15.Links to Future Plans

This decision report and the recommendations contained therein are intrinsically linked to current and ongoing plans for operational policing, notably the road safety plan Vision Zero.

16.Background Papers and Appendices

Business Justification Case (Stage A) – The purchase of four TruCam II handheld speed enforcement cameras – OFFICIAL SENSITIVE – OPERATIONAL
(not for publication)

Stage A BJC –
TruCam devices v1.2.docx
Delegated authority form – The purchase of four TruCam II hand-held speed
enforcement cameras – OFFICIAL SENSITIVE – OPERATIONAL (not for
publication)

TruCam DA
2023.doc