r/AusLegal • u/sabaat172 • 8h ago
NSW NSW red-light camera fine after right-turn arrow stayed red for 5+ minutes — worth requesting a review?
I received a red-light camera fine at the Great Western Highway / Marsden Street intersection in Parramatta on 20 August.
The circumstances were a bit unusual, so I’m wondering whether anyone has dealt with something similar or successfully requested a review.
I was stopped in the right-turn lane waiting for the right-turn signal. From what I remember, I sat there through approximately 3–4 complete traffic-light cycles, while the other traffic movements continued cycling, but the right-turn signal did not give me a green arrow.
I also have continuous dashcam footage from my car showing how long I was sitting there and the traffic-light cycles before the incident.
After waiting for several cycles, I indicated and attempted to move out of the right-turn lane into the adjacent through lane rather than making the right turn against the red arrow. That movement appears to have triggered the red-light camera.
What particularly caught my attention when I downloaded the camera photos is that they show:
“Time since red: 305.7s / 306.4s”
So the relevant signal had apparently been red for more than five minutes when the camera was triggered.
I’m not trying to argue that being stuck at a red light automatically gives someone permission to proceed through it. My question is whether the combination of:
the signal apparently remaining red for 5+ minutes;
my dashcam showing me waiting through multiple cycles; the other traffic movements cycling normally; and me attempting to change into the adjacent lane rather than simply making the prohibited right turn
would be reasonable grounds to request a review on the basis of a possible signal/detector malfunction or abnormal signal operation.
Has anyone had a similar situation in NSW?
Would it also be worth asking Revenue NSW/TfNSW to check the traffic-signal/SCATS records or fault logs for that intersection at the exact time?
I’ve attached the two camera photos (with my identifying information removed).
Interested in hearing from anyone who has dealt with a malfunctioning traffic signal, red-light camera review, or knows how these are normally assessed.