According to media reports, all fixed speed check boxes in the Alpine country bordering Austria and Switzerland are currently deactivated. In the midst of the summer holiday hustle and bustle - when traffic is flowing, nerves are on edge, and speed limit monitoring would be particularly important (and profitable) - South Tyrol's fixed speed controls collectively switch to standby mode. The reason for this is not a technical defect, but a ministerial intervention from above dictating that such devices may only be installed on "designated roads" - which currently do not exist in South Tyrol, as the Merkur reports, for example.
And that hurts financially: Because speed traps, of course, make municipal coffers ring, even if they are visible from afar in bright orange in Italy. In 2024 alone, Italy's municipalities reportedly collected over 1.7 billion euros in fines. Milan topped the list with 204 million euros, followed by Rome (145.8 million) and Florence (61.6 million). But even small municipalities can significantly boost their tight budgets thanks to speed traps: The village of Carrodano, with 465 inhabitants, took in about 807,000 euros with a single speed trap, while Colle Santa Lucia earned 671,000 euros – speed traps paid off quickly. But in South Tyrol, a ministerial decree now stops the cash flow.
Speed trap
pause by order of the Minister of Transport
As reported by RAI Südtirol, the "pause" affects all fixed speed check columns in the region. According to Christian Carli, president of the South Tyrolean local police, the collective speed trap silence is related to a new decree by Transport Minister Matteo Salvini. This stipulates that stationary speed controls are only allowed where the prefecture expressly gives the green light. And these approvals are still pending in South Tyrol.
And now the bureaucratic merry-go-round gets to gallop wildly, because before speed traps can flash again, the responsible government commissioner must precisely define, based on accident and traffic data, on which roads speed traps make sense and are permitted. Until then, the technology remains off - and speed offenders might feel temporarily unobserved. Carli views the development with mixed feelings:
"The speed check columns are not money-printing machines, but a tool for traffic safety."
Especially during travel time, when South Tyrol's roads are in a state of exception, the lack of preventive controls is "anything but ideal."
No worries, everything is legal – but please with type approval
But that's not all: Another (legal) stumbling block concerns the technical approval of the speed traps. According to a ruling by the Italian Supreme Court in 2024, only "type-approved"
devices may be used. So those working with a "just approved" speed trap risk the legal fragility of issued fine notices – and may have to pay them back expensively.
But in this regard, Carli gives the all-clear: In South Tyrol, only legally correctly homologated devices are used – including an annual technical inspection. Even at the time of procurement, the corresponding approval is mandatory. Unlike in Treviso, where an incorrectly maintained device brought thousands of fine notices into question, South Tyrol considers itself on the safe side.
New rules for speed traps – transparency instead of surprise
The shutdown in South Tyrol is not an isolated case but part of a nationwide reform: Since 12 June 2025, new, uniform regulations for the installation of speed traps apply in Italy. The aim is to end arbitrary or "strategically advantageous" locations (preferably at downhill village exits).
The most important new rules at a glance:
- Announcement requirement: Speed traps must be announced with a traffic sign 200 meters before within villages and 1,000 meters outside villages.
- Permissible locations: Stationary devices may only be installed in 50 km/h zones within closed localities.
- Minimum distance: At least 1 kilometer must lie between two speed traps within villages and at least 4 kilometers outside villages.
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Speed limit rule: The allowed speed may be at a maximum of 20 km/h below the general limit at the speed trap location.
- No camouflage: Hidden or camouflaged devices are expressly prohibited.
- Mobile speed traps: They must also adhere to the same transparency and technical rules.
The background to the actually rather "soft" rules is that there have been too many cases where speed offenders were not caught due to safety concerns but due to creative location choices. Particularly spectacular was the case of a supermarket employee who racked up 28,000 euros in fines on the way to work due to a barely visible speed trap. The national outcry followed promptly – and led to the reform.
In South Tyrol, however, there is an emphasis on the real purpose of the devices. Municipal association president Andreas Schatzer stresses:
"We care about safety and order – not revenue."
What does that mean?
Until the new regulations are implemented in South Tyrol and the corresponding roads are officially approved, the speed check columns remain in sleep mode. So anyone who speeds should not feel too safe – because eventually, they will be back: vigilant, homologated, and, in the future, always clearly visible. And: South Tyrol can still deploy clearly visible mobile homologated speed traps!
