Territory as Unavoidable Constraints for Automated Speed Camera Programs

The implementation of a program of automated speed enforcement (ASE) necessarily involves a relationship with the territory concerned. This article analyses both this physical relationship and the way the notion is transformed by the program itself, which offers a new interpretation of it. The first section sets out to demonstrate that while these programs function within administered territories, their effectuation leads to the creation of “conceptual territories.” The programs are highly diverse and their variety is expressive of institutional, organizational and environmental characteristics. The second section sets out to analyze the constraints encountered by ASE programs in the context of different territorial contexts, which represent real hindrances to their functioning. Nonetheless it seems to be within the capacities of the programs to limit the impact of these constraints and to come up with innovative solutions.