Money to pay for long-awaited speed cameras is likely to be allocated in the 2026-2027 budget but government would not be drawn on a specific timetable for when they are going to be rolled out across Cayman’s road network.
Responding to a question from Red Bay MP Roy Tatum in Parliament on 16 Oct., Minister for Infrastructure Jay Ebanks said that the introduction of automated speed enforcement “is a key part of the National Road Safety Strategy, which is focused on saving lives and reducing serious injuries on the road”.
Regulations to be finalised
Ebanks said the Attorney General’s Office had confirmed that the use of these devices was already permitted under the Traffic Act (2021 Revision) and that new supporting regulations are currently being finalised, which will require Cabinet’s approval before the system can be fully implemented.
“These regulations will set out the technical and legal framework,” said Ebanks, “including how the devices are certified, how evidence is managed and how enforcement is carried out.”
Excessive speed contributes to 40% of all vehicle collisions on Cayman’s roads, according to the National Roads Authority, and is a major factor in the number of road deaths and severity of accidents in Cayman.
The National Road Safety Strategy 2023-2038 promised that speed cameras would be rolled out in 2024 to deter speeding and prevent accidents, but there is still some way to go before they will be operational on island.
Funding for the initiative is being considered as part of the ministry’s 26-27 budget, said Ebanks, and it will be rolled out over three years “to make sure the system is affordable, effective and properly integrated with the existing enforcement operations”.
Cameras in high-risk locations
Once regulations and funding are approved, he said, phase one will begin with installation of a mobile speed camera unit and a number of fixed cameras at high-risk locations. Where cameras will be placed will depend on traffic volumes, with priority given to schools in pedestrian-heavy areas and accident black spots.
“Our goal is simple,” said Ebanks, “to make our roads safer for everyone and to stop the loss of life that could be both tragic and preventable.”
Pressed by opposition MP Tatum on whether the first cameras might be in place by March next year, Ebanks replied, “If it were left to me I would have had them up by now, but I can’t answer that question right now.”
Road improvements in Grand Harbour
Replying to a separate question, Ebanks said that he had just recently seen the plans for new road improvements for the Grand Harbour area, which included completing the roundabout by the King’s Sports Centre and connecting Edgewater Way to Grand Harbour and onto Selkirk Drive, which, he said, should take traffic away from the six-lane highway.
He also said that the addition of road-calming measures including lane delineators along Shamrock Road had, as far as he could see, led to a reduction in accidents, and the National Roads Authority was currently considering other such measures in areas like Selkirk Drive, East End and West Bay.
Related Videos
Cameras, an absolute must throughout the island, not just for traffic, but for crime as well
They could give it a project name for publicity purposes. Something like ‘Project shooting fish in a barrel’ would be a good start. They need 5 or 6 mobile speed detection vans as well as fixed cameras. 20,000 tickets for speeding and no insurance or licence offenses in the first few days. Easy!
Why is it in this country that vital projects take for ever to be put in place. We have an army of civil servants, some of the highest paid M.P’s and Ministers in the world, yet speed cameras and beach replenishment to name two, are still on the drawing board and who knows when they will be completed?.