How much money is generated by fixed speed cameras in France – and where does it go?

Fines from fixed speed cameras are expected to generate €693 million in 2026 under budget forecasts. 

This compares with €889 million in 2024, partly due to vandalised devices and periods when radars were out of service. 

For some drivers, speed cameras are seen as a symbol of state control and an extra source of taxation on road users – and are frequently deliberately broken. Recent examples include farmer protests, where cameras were destroyed or covered over.

Lower payment rates for fines have also contributed to the government adopting more cautious revenue projections. Money generated from speed camera fines has always been strictly controlled by parliament. 

A report to parliament last October showed how the €965 million received from speed camera fines in 2023 was distributed. 

The largest part, €340 million, was for a multi-ministry organisation to coordinate road safety, the Délégation à la sécurité routière.

Some €211 million went to the agency that oversees transport infrastructure, the Agence de financement des infrastructures de transport de France, which in 2023 had an overall budget of €3.69 billion.

There was a €201 million contribution to reducing the nation’s debt, followed by €187 million to local councils, ring-fenced for spending on road safety measures.

The final slice of the budget was €26 million for the health service, with the money to be used to help people left seriously injured or disabled by road accidents.

Provisional figures show 3,513 people died on France’s roads in 2025 and around 244,000 people were injured, according to road safety body ONISR.

As well as the €693 million the finance ministry anticipates from fixed speed camera fines in 2026, it also expects to generate €1.46 billion from other automated road safety controls such as traffic light cameras, mobile speed cameras, and increasingly the use of cameras to control the distance between cars to prevent tailgating.

The 2026 state budget plan for road safety controls includes €54 million to install new radars and replace older models.

Since the introduction of private radar vehicles in Haute-Garonne in September 2025, more than 4,000 drivers had been caught speeding by the end of the year. 

Private radar vehicles now operate in all areas of mainland France with the exception of the capital Île-de-France and Corsica regions. 

Service providers are not paid based on the number of speed camera flashes but the number of kilometres traveled during speed checks, which is set in advance in the contract. A penalty is imposed if this limit is exceeded. 

Drivers of private radar cars are also obliged to drive at a speed appropriate to the normal flow of traffic, rather than travelling slower expressly to encourage other vehicles to overtake while speeding.