Mini Coyote helps road runners

No sensible road user would ever condone speeding, but hidden speed traps can be the bane of a motorist's life. A new device called the Mini Coyote may provide the answer.

The £199 gadget is placed on a car's dashboard and acts a beacon to other road users when the driver spots a hidden camera. Motorists in the area with the same equipment receive a warning when an eagle-eyed (or possibly just incriminated) driver presses a button on the unit.

Satellites relay the information to a processing centre, which is then sent back to other drivers, telling them how many times a particular trap has been reported, the speed limit on the road and the distance the driver is to the camera.

That seems like a lengthy process, but Mini Coyote manufacturer Novus claims that a car just 300 yards behind the driver who first spots the trap would get a warning in time to slow down.

More than 50,000 French drivers have already bought the device, and no less than 27,000 speed traps were reported in September alone. However, as you'd imagine, there are legal issues regarding the Coyote.

The device could arguably be construed as perverting the cause of justice, though AA President Edmund King claimed it “would be extremely difficult to prosecute someone for perverting the course of justice if they had warned another motorist of speed cameras ahead.”

However, Road safety groups oppose the device because it prevents police from prosecuting serial speeders, though manufacturer Novus claims it actually improves safety by preventing drivers spotting cameras late and stamping on their brakes.

The Government has previously said it plans to outlaw devices of this kind, with a spokeswoman saying that 'the police do need the ability to carry out unannounced enforcement with mobile cameras.”

Mark Nichol