Australian Police Warn Drivers Against Using Waze to Evade Speed Cameras

Queensland Police are cracking down on drivers who use navigation apps like Waze to avoid speeding fines, with one senior sergeant issuing a stern warning against using the technology as a loophole.

Senior Sergeant Shane Panoho stated, "Stop driving like a bloody muppet and actually do the right thing. If you don't, we will do our best to impede you and fine you and take away your driving privileges."

Research from the University of the Sunshine Coast, published in the Journal of Experimental Criminology, suggests that many drivers reduce their speed only when an alert for a speed camera appears on their app, only to resume speeding afterward. Researchers used laser devices to measure the speeds of over 9,000 drivers.

"We know that drivers are speeding and they're just slowing down when these alerts are appearing on the app and they're continuing to speed at other times," said Dr. Levi Anderson, a research associate at the university.

According to Dr. Anderson, this behavior makes it more challenging for law enforcement to enforce speed limits effectively. "It gives police a very short window to kind of interact or enforce speed limits without drivers being aware of their presence," he noted.

The study found that 50% of drivers were observed speeding before slowing down when a speed camera warning was displayed on the app. This pattern was consistent across various speed limits, road types, and zones, including work zones and school zones.

These warnings come as Australia recorded over 1,300 road deaths in the past year, according to the Federal Government's National Road Safety Data Hub. Some members of the public have argued that Waze can improve road safety by prompting drivers to slow down in potentially dangerous areas, with one commenter suggesting, "You get a heads up and you slow down. Isn’t that the point?"