France’s ‘most profitable’ radar flashes 170,000 drivers per year
Radar on motorway between Nice and Antibes has ranked among France’s busiest since 2018 speed limit change on stretch of road
Drivers face fines of €68 to €135 for speeding on the A8 motorway. Photo for illustrative purposes only
ricochet64/Shutterstock
A speed radar on a motorway in the French Riviera has been ranked France’s busiest as it flashes 170,000 vehicles per year.
Located on the A8 near Cagnes-sur-Mer (Alpes-Maritimes) around 400 drivers per day were flashed by the camera in 2024 (the most recent full figures available).
The second-busiest camera in 2024 was located in Bourget (Seine-Saint-Denis) with the third in Floirac (Gironde).
It comes as French authorities received €889 million from speeding fines in 2024 from fixed radars.
The radar in Cagnes-sur-Mer contributes around millions to this – drivers caught speeding at less than 50 km/h on an autoroute such as the A8 face a €135 fine, or €68 if going less than 19 km/h over the limit.
Camera has been flashing for years
This figure was not an irregularity, however, with the camera recording a similar number of flashes annually since 2019.
Between its initial installation in 2008 and 2018, it did not post exceptional figures.
In October 2018 however, the speed limit on the section of the autoroute where the camera is located was reduced to 90 km/h, causing drivers to be caught off-guard.
Outside of Nice’s urban area (including the stretch of road by Cagnes-sur-Mer), the motorway has a typical speed limit of 110 km/h.
In 2019 – the first full year since the speed limit reduction – more than 200,000 vehicles were flashed, and since 2020 around 170,000 drivers per year continue to receive a fine for speeding on this section of the road.
“It's a bit hidden so from a distance you can't really see it,” said one driver to media outlet BFTMV.
“I see quite a few people who don't pay attention to the speed camera and get flashed,” said another.
Similar issues have been recorded nearby after the RM6098 in Saint-Laurent-du-Var dropped its maximum from 70 km/h to 50 km/h, leading to fines for many drivers.
Despite the change being in place for several years, drivers continue to face speeding fines.
The difference between 90 km/h and 110 km/h is enough for many drivers to be over the radar’s margin of error, but not enough to face significant fines.
“More than half of all speeding offenses involve an excess of less than 10 km/h,” said Pierre Chasseray, director general of the 40 millions d'automobilistes association.
“Each speed camera generates a huge amount of revenue, and it generates most of that revenue from very minor speeding offenses,” he added.
