Long Lane speed camera ripped from the ground

A SPEED camera in Hillingdon was ripped out from the ground by a disgruntled motorist.

The Gatso in Long Lane, Hillingdon, was ripped out presumably with the help of heavy machinery, and is lying prone on the side of the busy 30mph road.

Gazette photographer Toby van de Velde said: "It looks like somebody has just wrapped a chain around it and yanked it out."

The road stretches between Uxbridge and Ickenham, and has a speed camera near to the junction with Oak Farm Primary School.

Mukhtar Ali, from Iver, who uses the road daily, said: "The camera has been completely uprooted, it is very good news.

"I think it is a message for Hillingdon that speed cameras are not wanted here."

The camera is 50 yards from the shrine to Terry Hobson, the driver who died on the road on New Years' Eve 2008, who crashed into a tree while being followed by police.

Swindon Council recently caused controversy by becoming the first local authority in England to axe speed cameras claiming they do not save lives, although Hillingdon Council , who have been running a hard hitting anti-speeding campaign over the past few months, indicated they have no plans to follow suit.

Police are believed to be investigating the incident.

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