The Speed Camera Lottery - The Fun Theory

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The winning idea of the fun theory award, submitted by Kevin Richardson, USA. Can we get more people to obey the speed limit by making it fun to do? This was the question Kevin's idea answered and it was so good that Volkswagen, together with The Swedish National Society for Road Safety, actually made this innovative idea a reality in Stockholm, Sweden.

[@unicornforge]

This is evidence that rewarding good behavior is more effective than punishing bad behavior.

[@mscullen1612]

This is an amazing idea, and maybe going 2mph more than permitted may seem like nothing, but the purpose of this is making people doing the right thing.

[@444destiny]

I love the concept behind it. I don't care for the cameras though. On the other hand it does save gas and forces people to not only slow down in their vehicles, but it may also get people to slow down internally. Yes I'm on the fence. :)

[@VasilisBotoulas]

I think it will increase traffic in the long term. Best idea for me so far were "the piano stairs".

[@dalerobertson1951]

I wish this could be implemented in the school zones here in the USA. I am a crossing guard and would be in rapture if cars would slow down to only 35 MPH in my school zone which is suppose to be 25 MPH.

[@lluitajove]

@Chicharrero91 I'm agree, my comment said something like yours. So I think that people should not value the money they earn by going slowly, but you should value the lives that do not threaten.

[@D.W.HSoundsOfficial]

This is such an interesting concept!

[@matheuscezarotto2894]

Very nice!! Gamification

[@taterpuffs]

LOVE THIS THEORY!!!

[@MintBullet]

The point is not to slow everyone down and insure that they waste more time travelling, out of fear of retribution or out of greed. The point is to prevent accidents on the road, by making people know more about accidents and how to prevent them, or making the driving practical test harder, etc. This is enforcing the letter of the law but totally not the spirit.

[@SHNUCAU]

It does not matter if you call it a minimum or maximum. It is suggested. That was my point. Going 61 in a 60 does not cause cars to explode and people to die. I may be wrong about the speed limit and congestion, but I seriously doubt that those who conducted the study took 300,000 cars and got them all to space properly and follow the speed limit in order to test their hypothesis. The study was probably just an analysis of conditions that were current at the time.

[@SHNUCAU]

Finally, the most important message to take away from this was not that we should all be careless drivers but that the violent monopoly we know as government is doing far worse things to entire populations than any single person that breaks the speed limit.

[@svendlarose]

I lived down the block from this genius! His daughter used to have a huge crush on me, before she became a model. Perhaps she will get a crush on me again after I get elected to Congress.

[@thenewyorkean]

People weren't speeding down because they were entering a lottery.. it's a rational reflectional reaction to a blinking shinny speed meter.. Sorry, but this is a biased trial of gamification. But getting people motivated through vids like this to create social helpful staff, is always a good thing.

[@jqxok]

You have literally no evidence to back up your claim, but even if it were true, so what? Isn't it the net effect that matters?

[@mangayakposowa4334]

To know either way with more certainty, there would have to be comparison studies or a comparison to other camera or blinker systems that don't include a lottery. Are people slowing down because they see their speed is being taken, to avoid a ticket, to win money, or some combination...

[@adnan37h]

I'll keep driving through there again, again , again, and again.. If the reward was good enough.

[@maowtm]

Just need to limit one participation per vehicle

[@jackster1212]

Now that's a great idea... we ought to have this on U.S. highways, too.

[@VailCowboy]

Like it or not like it. It works in this location effectively, which is obviously urban enough to warrant moderate speed. Speed is better suited for the open road.

[@eddiesmiles]

when they say, "fun can obviously change behavior for the better," it seems 'fun' is just another way of saying 'money.' either way, it's a very clever idea. bravo.

[@thereisnonameleft]

I think the idea is just cute. Even though everybody knows things like this is no solution it's just a fun and different way of dealing with problems in society. Like it!

[@Disc0Ding0]

@fergalson It's actually psychological fact and the proof is when speed limits were first enforced a lot more people started dying in crashes than before the speed limits

[@fhfffhfhffffhfhfourt]

as soon as one of these shows up in my town, I'm going to be the only car photographed. If not that, then I'll at least get a few hundred entries every day.

[@gslrider]

Not so much "Fun", but the "money" factor. Money makes the world go round, and can make people do almost anything.

[@hoikay1]

I think we need this camera to spread across the world to slow everyone down.:-)

[@Kiev-in-3-days]

Would be a lot easier and cheaper to limit all private vehicles speed based on their GPS location.

[@DEADABES]

@SmallCityLiving this isnt necessarily a lottery/gamble as much as it is the possibility of getting rewarded for doing the right thing.. so this is in no way a violation of anyones anything, youre just looking for a possible wrinkle in a novel idea.

[@fannibal]

Depends on the levels of enforcement, in areas where the speed limit is 75, people drive 80-85. Now, in order to maintain the same average speed, lawmakers probably will have to set the speed limit to 90 in order to have people drive at the same average speeds as before.

[@servant74]

Now we need a 'Maker:' group to publish plans for how to make these signs, even without the camera it would be something fun on the road sides!

[@NetmentorTV]

@dawitekid20 the way ive seen that done isnt really a "leash". in our town the daycare has a long rope with many little hand loops, the kids, when on field trips to the farmers market, just hold on and walk together, able to let go. no-one is strapped or clipped in. entirely voluntary and seems like fun to the kids.

[@OtisLikesCats]

here's the thing, considering how inaccurate speedometers can be, they would just be ticketing the people that are DRASTICALLY speeding. which is what a speed cam does. the difference is, they are taking that money and using it to reward the people that truly obey the law. i'd expect that they would be only entering the people that are unquestionably following the law. either way, they would be ticketed for a traffic cam, but this way people have an incentive to avoid that gray area.

[@wastelandnumberseven]

slight problem with this, in that the more people who find it fun and obey the law, the less money there is to win.

[@SR71_Blackbird]

@kokafones I'm pretty sure the animation was made by an American but they actually used the lottery in Sweden.

[@EdWayneB]

Really interested in any results for this - both short term, but also long term impact on speeding. Does anyone know if they have been published. Finding it hard to find anything on the web... Thanks

[@dominodoce]

@Guitarrassdeamor you are perfectly right and there is no doubt speed is usually not the cause of an accident. with that said speed in an accident will be the cause of fatality. the laws are not there for enjoyment of individuals they are there to protect the common people and we know the common people do not have common sense... in my humble opinion lack of direction proper sight and driving skills is the cause for most driving accidents add to that a few poorly maintained cars and well...

[@mortschubert3909]

They don't give a fck about lower speeds and road safety: they want the money. More obedience has never hurt the system, though! :)

[@edbo10]

Fuck off spammer

[@Yelonek1986]

@MasterFleisch Yeah, you would need a control group to tell if this is making a difference. Cool idea though.

[@goneutt]

@TheDragonAlan In some areas there are Minimum Speed limits as well. If you are impeding the flow you are a problem. Just because you don't have anything to do but feed the cat and collect Hummels doesn't mean that line of cars behind you has the same intents. If you are doing 20 mph less than the flow of traffic YOU ARE THE JAM!

[@mtkw08]

this won't change anyone's behavior. they may slow down around there but as soon as the camera is in the distance they will resume at their regular speed. there is no one on this earth who goes exactly the speed limit and not one mile per hour faster

[@Darkdantedevil]

@Airclot if you reduce fatalities due to speeding or otherwise violating traffic laws, why is there a problem? it's just an inverse ticket: A deposit on a dvd that is returned to you if you bring the dvd back on time works the same way.

[@SHNUCAU]

First of all, the speed limit is a suggest safe speed. It is not the only safe speed at which to operate a car. Second, if everyone obeyed the speed limit, there would be more traffic congestion. Third, no victim, no crime. I have not injured anyone by going over the suggested traveling speed. Therefore, no penalty should be given.

[@AlexEsther]

This is pretty smart! Passing it along...

[@truslack2007]

@Guitarrassdeamor running red lights can be done with a lot of common sense, not putting anyone in danger - if it's 4am on an open junction where you can see each direction for at least 200m and it's clear, who are you putting in danger?

[@ToddGalloway]

@puretroubleman well except that the ultimate goal is not for individuals to win money but to have a safer road.

[@papagayin3]

Yes, but people know that they will, most likely, not win. It's the thrill of tthe chance to win the prize that makes them drive slowly.

[@passiabhishek]

Very Good initiative

[@suresoundsgood]

@yoanxp I agree but maybe it would be an even better idea to increase the speed limit in the USA on highways like they do in other countries and then turn the cameras in town where the speed limit is slow into this idea....

[@sharp_tooter]

this is a great idea and certainly works......but unfortunately it doesn't stop people from speeding AFTER initially going past the camera under the speed limit. The only speed enforcement that works successfully IMO are point-to-point average speed reading cameras becuase the average person can't do the math to work out if he can afford to speed or not. Now combine the speed camera lottery with a point-to-point system and you've got a near perfect solution.

[@AcerbicMaelin]

@lalit008 And as soon as they stop obeying the limit, the lottery gets big again. So there's always a strong incentive not to speed.

[@EphemeralDust]

The problem with this is, if everyone knew about those then people would slow down just to get entered into the lottery. Then if you had the patience you could drive by it a dozen times a day just to get more entries to improve you odds.

[@JamesBickerton]

Great idea but people generally slow down for that 3 metre stretch. Then speed back up again once they have passed the camera.

[@flyawayhome3]

well yeah... with a speed camera vs no speed camera people are definitely going to reduce their speed. fun speed camera vs boring speed camera is the only way to see how well this works.

[@eemarko]

30km/h is such a small limit, that you don't even need to worry about someone passing it.

[@pettiblay]

I would probably rocket down the road and brake just before the speed camera. Like every speeder does nowadays, seeing how speed cameras are announced 1km before.

[@dirrtysteve89]

just the act of putting the camera there will make people stop speeding, as soon as they are away it goes back to normal, stop patting yourselves on the back and get back to the drawing board

[@willt.9654]

Ok but what was the rate of accidents before and after the experiment? Was it even a big issue there to begin with or was this just the only city that said yes to the idea?

[@chan625]

They can make it count few zero below decimals..and then reward the car with most unique speed value posted....that way people wont be going with snail speed

[@almostpositive]

I like this, but I find it odd and disappointing that 'fun' is used to mean 'more money for me!'.

[@margueritewolfeconferencie6530]

Bravo! Si vous connaissez le chef de police de votre région, ce serait une idée "le fun" à lui suggérer. Motiver par le plaisir serait beaucoup plus efficaces que de distribuer des contraventions! Super volkswagen!

[@yoanperez]

I think it's a good idea but... it's not really the fun theory. The fun theory is doing something because it's fun, like the piano staircase. You take the stairs because it plays music as a piano and it's fun. In this case it's a classic doing something because you might get a reward (money) and not because it's fun to drive slowly...

[@nonumbersattheend]

@yoanxp Its fun because you get a chance to win money if you obey the speed limit, thus for making it "fun" If winning a lottery is not fun, then what is?

[@vampirediarieslover2929]

really cool and smart

[@dublistener]

@yoanxp actually I'd think it's pretty fun just to see if you would win

[@EdySmi]

I don't think it was the lottery part of this experiment that changed the speeds, it was more likely the fact that drivers were reminded how fast they were driving and adjusted themselves accordingly. In NZ we have these speed reminder thing all over the place, and they don't take photographs or anything, but they made a big difference in average speeds.

[@HuggumsMcgehee]

The Speed Camera Lottery: Making highway robbery more fun since 1959.

[@eyebidem]

indeed not really gamification, but a nice idea and implementation anyway

[@alternative3495]

Great idea, great country!

[@osanjose]

The music of the video sound to me to Swedish bands like Lacrosse. Does anyone know the performers of the music? Thanks Oscar

[@LSky]

@cupsandballsmagic At which point success is achieved. People will still abide to the speed limit just to take that small chance.

[@Neverregretperson]

Here in Saudi Arabia, we have cameras if you exceed the speed limit , you're fined !!!! It has better effect , though

[@InvisiMan2006]

Doesn't it seem strange that we are rewarding people for doing something that they are legally obligated to do? 0_o

[@SHNUCAU]

If I stop paying taxes, I will still use the roads as my money was used to pay for them. The government does not have domain over all the land in the world and I am free to travel as I please. Water is easily accessible without government. In fact, here in Texas, government is trying to force people to use the water surface they "provide" by outlawing wells. Electricity is already provided by private companies as well as medial care (government fucked this up when they got involved).

[@johnyqtx]

Yes! Use fun and money, not enforcement and punishment!

[@hangli6662]

Lack of the comparison of what kind of sign stood there before. So I wonder the driver slows down only because of the big speed number of their car and the camera behind it, but not the lottery. I don't how much percent the gamification weighted in this situation. Otherwise, a big sign of camera would work the same.

[@TheAnonymousViewer]

@dawitekid20 You've never seen that before? I've seen it used at a lot of daycares as a handy method for keeping kids together.

[@artblack01]

If you give the person directly behind the speeders (who are obeying the speed limit) the money from the speeder that would pressure the people who speed to not speed because who wants the person behind them to get their money?

[@oitotheworld23]

AWESOME! Udmaerket! Hvor var det en god ide.

[@eyebidem]

@yoanxp well, in fact, fun itself has a lot to do with rewarding experience...

[@zerge83]

@westborn congrats, wow you must be really smart to find out that one. You know it's a number that indicates how fast were MOST cars passing, yes there have been ones with 36 and some with 28, but they are the extreme cases, MOST cars were passing with 30-34 that gives an average of 32. Now these numbers may changed to 34-26, and 28-32 which means MOST cars are now 2km/h slower. How is that different from what I said?

[@01MLin]

Definitely a cool concept, but I'd say greed drives the drivers to drive slowly.

[@PluginEverything]

You can read all about it in my new book "Faster than the speed of love."

[@puretroubleman]

@itodd then just use a normal speed camera?

[@zerge83]

@Neverregretperson Here in Europe we understand what people are saying, it has better effect! listen carefully from 0:55

[@meorthejob]

My Outlier class in Psychology brought me here.

[@andrephx90]

@dawitekid20 A way to keep them together and organized. No need for caps...

[@DedrickWelch]

Cool idea

[@QualmFromBF30]

Supercool, how many motorcycles have won? hahahaha. Guess its hard to gain anything out of this if your numberplate is in the back. :P

[@PaulJohnstonTarves]

@MasterFleisch One UK County Council has scrapped speed Cameras with some saying they were making too much money and they were just a money making exercise. Clearly, speed fines by themselves are not working well enough then.

[@kokafones]

KPH - 0:47 MPH - 1:05 I'm confused

[@cheezeninja]

I think the hefty ticket for speeding had a lot more to do with speed reduction than the 'fun' of possibly winning some money.

[@bocajbee]

@kyledonmoyer Dur, say the speed limit is 30km/h, why not make the 'jackpot' happen when your driving in-between say 25km/h and 30km/h, to keep the traffic flowing efficiently. So if you drive slower than 25km/h your 'jackpot' gets reduced the slower you go (old ladies won't win much then). And even if the jackpot was only $2 per person they would still do it for the money anyway, it's free money after all even if its only 2 bucks. Surely you could of figured that out all by your self right?

[@someman7]

Actually, one "type" of fun according to a certain (to use a hype term) gamificationist is "winning". This qualifies. However! I do not want a picture of my license plates taken. This invades my privacy. I'm afraid, this is not a good idea - for this reason.

[@SevenMilliFrog]

The best theory

[@zmileguy]

Kör lagligt tjäna deg, perfekt!

[@TheMessiShow]

I wouldn't speed because of the guaranteed chance of being caught, not for the chance to win the money.

[@adidm1]

Does anyone know the name of the song played on the video?

[@1castellp]

entered in a drawing and checked for warrents

[@trimerdon1]

Fun didn't reduce their speed. The opportunity to win money did.

[@Bullseye5477]

Hey, don't laugh, I won 56 million dollars in this lotto. I'm on easy street now!

[@StuckNgheed]

Good Word

[@MasterM0K]

I doubt anyone who went over the limit is gonna fork over the speeding ticket, if the handler is just VW and not a govt entity.

[@CleverMunkey]

MONEY can obviously change behaviour, better than fun! :P

[@SHNUCAU]

No. Saying that it is incumbent upon a person to be a nomad until the people of the world finally agree that all people are free and no one should be oppressed is wrong in so many ways. It implies that all people are slaves. It implies that no one should have property. It implies that the first form of government in a geographical area is that was ever practiced should always be practiced as those who were dissatisfied should have left instead of claiming their freedom.