Drivers slow down in speed trap

The cameras have been installed in Ayrshire

The UK's longest speed trap has cut speeding by almost 90% on one of Scotland's most dangerous roads, it has been claimed.

The operators of the system said only 21 motorists had been caught breaking the limit on the 46km stretch of the A77 in Ayrshire in three months.

This showed that drivers were getting the message, according to the Strathclyde Safety Camera Partnership.

The Speed Enforcement Camera System (Specs) calculates an average speed.

Accident record

The £775,000 initiative involved the installation of 40 banks of hi-tech cameras at points between Bogend Toll, north of Ayr, to Ardwell, south of Girvan.

They measure the time it takes a vehicle to travel between various points, allowing the system to calculate its average speed.

The stretch between Ayr and Girvan was chosen to trial the scheme because of its accident record.

Trial period

There were 15 fatalities and 314 crashes in five years on the 28-mile section.

The Strathclyde Safety Camera Partnership said 21 drivers had been caught speeding in the first three months of the scheme.

It compared the figures to a trial monitoring period and calculated an 87% drop in vehicles breaking the speed limit - with no drop in traffic levels.