That evening, at 6:18pm I am turning right onto St Georges road off Bell Street. After waiting my turn for five light changes, I am sitting behind one car as we wait for a break in the traffic. We are pretty much in the middle of the intersection, no mans land.
No break in traffic, the lights go amber, the guy in front is slow........ FLASH I am sure as well as myself, the two cars behind got done as well.
Just for reference on this one:
If the light is green and there are vehicles approaching from the opposite direction, you should move forward into the intersection past the STOP line if you can do so safely. If there is a safe gap in oncoming traffic, you may complete the turn. If you are in the intersection and the oncoming traffic continues until the lights turn yellow or red, you must complete the turn on the yellow or red light.
From http://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Safety/Queensland-road-rules/Road-rules-refresher/Traffic-lights.aspx
It is also covered in the Australia Road Rules - Rule 58 deals with when a driver does not have to stop for a red traffic light.
(5) If the traffic lights or traffic arrows (as the case may be) change to yellow or red while the driver is stopped and the driver has entered the intersection, the driver must leave the intersection as soon as the driver can do so safely.
Based on rule 58, you could have submitted a written dispute to the infringement notice and had the penalty revoked.
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The big issue I have with fixed and hidden speed cameras is the now constant need to watch the speedo instead of focusing on traffic conditions around the vehicle. Driving in the Sydney Harbour Tunnel and the Lane Cove Tunnel are two of the worst locations as they both have significant inclines, so it is very easy to pick up speed and creep over the limit. Moreso if you are towing a reasonable load. I find that when driving in these locations, I spend more time worrying about the speed I'm doing that watching for the actions of other drivers (who are also distracted by their speed monitoring).
I'm not sure how they allow for a compromise without it being open to abuse, but commonsense needs to come into play at some point. Putting a camera at the bottom of a slope, then hitting people with infringement notices for 3km/h over the limit is a joke. Average speed monitoring would be a far better system IMHO for these tunnels and motorways/freeways.