Denmark’s automatic traffic control program, known as ATK, marked its 10th anniversary on September 1, and DR spent a working day with one of the operators inside the camera vans.
The broadcaster’s report focused on Lars Smedegaard, a traffic operator with Funen Police. He has held the job for two and a half years, and previously ran a wine shop in Odense.
As DR reports, Smedegaard changed careers after his wife died. He sold his business and promised himself to work less and to take on jobs he had never tried. DR later corrected its article to note that he is a traffic operator, not a traffic controller.
The work brings him into contact with large numbers of motorists. According to DR, he has been called a racist and a Nazi, has been pushed and spat on, and has twice called for backup from police colleagues. He describes those incidents as rare and says most people he meets are friendly.
On the day DR visited, the van was parked at Gammelsø near the harbor in Odense. The speed limit on the stretch is 50 kilometers per hour, and most drivers passed within it. Three were caught during the first hours of the shift.
A 120 km/h case at the same spot
Smedegaard told DR that about six months ago he registered a young man driving 120 kilometers per hour at the same location. The case falls under the Danish reckless driving legislation, the so-called vanvidspakke. He said the car was most likely confiscated, and that the driver faces the loss of his license and a possible unconditional prison sentence.
Operators are also regularly approached by members of the public who want to ask about the checks. That happened again during DR’s visit to the site in Odense.
Flemming Glenn from Næsby stopped by after seeing the van in the same place where he was flashed the week before. He said he had believed the limit was 60 kilometers per hour and had not noticed the city limit sign further along the road. His fine came to 1,200 kroner, which he said was fair because he had still been speeding.
Glenn also asked Smedegaard about the job itself, saying he might consider similar work one day. Smedegaard said he would recommend it, and that he has not regretted leaving the wine trade for road safety work.
The van at Gammelsø is one of the mobile units used by Danish police for automated speed enforcement. Smedegaard said responsibility for the fines rests with drivers, since he is not the one pressing the accelerator. Motorists can also compare car insurance options separately from any speeding penalties.
