A fine result: Radio lends a helping hand

Success for Neil Mitchell’s speed camera campaign.

A radio campaign led by 3AW’s Neil Mitchell to return fines and lost demerit points to almost 1000 Melbourne drivers, because of a speed camera bungle, has been successful.

Victoria’s speed camera watchdog has today ruled against the Victoria Police, recommending 987 Melbourne drivers have their fines repaid and their demerit points and licences restored.

Mitchell first broke the story when a listener called to complain about being wrongly booked at the Keilor Park Drive Bridge on the Western Ring Road. After investigating the matter, Speed Camera watchdog Gordon Lewis has determined that overturning the fines and returning the demerit points is the only fair thing to do because signs warning of temporary 40 kilometres an hour road works at the site were inadequate.

Mitchell said the decision was a victory for 3AW, the station’s listeners, the motorists involved and common sense.

“We were first tipped off about this scandal by our listeners. They’re always our best researchers. We were then inundated with calls. The floodgates really opened. The calls and emails starting piling in. We knew then we were onto something really big. We did some digging and found out that almost 1000 drivers had been busted when they shouldn’t have.

“There’s no doubt that the signage was too confusing. Around 300 motorists stood to lose their licences because of this bungle. I’m delighted we’ve been able to help them in this way. It’s another shining example of the absolute power of talkback radio. 3AW has a rich and proud history of helping listeners in need like this and in the age of the 24 hour news cycle. It’s great to see that radio is still ‘punching above its weight’ on getting things done.”