Speed camera lottery rewards good drivers with cash taken from traffic fines

Kevin Richardson's (top left)) concept was put into action in Stockholm with NTF, the Swedish road transport authority   Photo: Supplied

Here’s a novel idea. Instead of punishing bad drivers, the good ones get to win a lottery.

The Speed Camera Lottery rewards drivers who obey the speed limit with the money raised through fining those who exceed the limit.

It was developed by San Francisco game producer Kevin Richardson, who submitted the winning entry in a 2012 competition. It was chosen from 699 entries.

The concept was tested and put into action in Stockholm, Sweden, as Hastighets Lotteriet, in collaboration with NTF, the Swedish road transport authority.

The Speed Camera Lottery was not an actual system but rather a creative idea designed to encourage safe driving habits and compliance with speed limits.

Here's how the Speed Camera Lottery concept worked:

The speed camera in operation on Sweden's roads   Photo: Supplied

Speed Cameras: The idea involves using speed cameras, similar to those already in use, to monitor traffic and enforce speed limits.

Lottery Incentive: Instead of using these cameras solely for issuing fines to speeding drivers, Richardson's concept introduces a lottery component. When a vehicle passes the speed camera within the legal speed limit, it is automatically entered into a lottery.

Prize Pool: The fines collected from drivers who exceed the speed limit would be used to fund the lottery's prize pool. This means that the revenue generated from speeders would be redistributed to law-abiding drivers as potential prizes.

Random Winners: At regular intervals (e.g., weekly or monthly), winners would be randomly selected from the pool of vehicles that adhered to the speed limit. These winners would receive cash prizes or other incentives funded by the collected fines.

The idea behind the Speed Camera Lottery is to create a positive reinforcement system that encourages drivers to obey speed limits by providing a potential financial reward.

It's a creative concept that aims to promote safer driving behavior while also generating funds for various community initiatives.

While the Speed Camera Lottery concept got attention and generated discussion, it was mainly a concept and had not been widely used in any location other than Stockholm.