Dumfries and Galloway Council’s Vehicle Speed Data Compromised

Speed data collected by Dumfries and Galloway Council’s vehicle-tracking system has been corrupted. A freedom of information (FOI) request from the BBC had sought details from the local authority regarding the number of instances its fleet management system had registered speeding over the past three years. However, the council indicated it was unable to furnish this information because the data from its telematics system had become corrupted. It further stated that it was collaborating with its provider to pinpoint “various sources of incorrect information” to enable the production of accurate speed recordings. The BBC’s FOI was submitted subsequent to a transport compliance report issued by the council this year, which identified some improvements compared to a previous study from 2022. Nevertheless, the report also highlighted areas where further work was required, particularly concerning driver behaviour. “The council has a role for determining speed limits across the region and should be seen to be following them,” the report added. An audit concluded that the local authority’s practices were satisfactory in most areas, but the level of assurance was deemed “low” regarding the effective utilization of telematics to ensure safe driver behaviour. Telematics is defined as a system that employs telecommunications and information technology to monitor and remotely process data from vehicles, equipment, and other assets. The report noted that the fleet management system provided information on the location of council vehicles and how they were being driven, including their speed. However, the audit revealed that some managers had voiced concerns about the reliability of this data, leading to a call for a council-wide policy on the use of telematics. The BBC had requested records of speeding incidents over the past three years, the highest speeds recorded, and whether any staff had faced disciplinary action. In its response, the council stated its inability to provide these details due to the corruption of the involved data. It added, “Transport and operations and our telematics provider are analysing reports weekly until we are confident that we can create a meaningful and robust speeding report.” Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.