Newsroom
In what’s becoming a classic Cyprus traffic debate, speed radars popping up near roundabouts have sparked new controversy. Are they strategically placed for safety or sneakily set up to catch unsuspecting drivers?
The director of traffic police headquarters, Harris Evripidou, insists there’s no guesswork—or “koutourou,” as Cypriots might say—behind these placements. He says they’re based on scientific studies, international standards, and hard crash data, not on a whim.
Demetriou, a former deputy commissioner, called it “unacceptable” to place radars near roundabouts, arguing that drivers often need time to adjust to changing speed limits.
“These spots aren’t chosen randomly,” Evripidou told the Cyprus News Agency (CNA). “They’re either officially black spots, which are areas with a history of accidents, or high-risk zones where data shows speeding is a major problem.”
One of the most recent reminders came on April 16, when four traffic accidents were recorded in a single day. One occurred between the Nicosia General Hospital roundabout and the IKEA store, a stretch that’s now under scrutiny.
Not everyone’s buying it
But not everyone’s on board. Two former high-ranking traffic police officials, Dimitris Demetriou and Andreas Papas, are publicly questioning the practice.
Demetriou, a former deputy commissioner, called it “unacceptable” to place radars near roundabouts, arguing that drivers often need time to adjust to changing speed limits. “These placements feel like a trap,” he said. “When I was in charge, we had clear directives—no radars where speed limits change, and certainly not at the mouth of a roundabout.”
Andreas Papas agrees, adding that it’s “very difficult” for drivers to observe strict limits while navigating a roundabout or transitioning from one speed zone to another.
So, what’s the actual rule?
According to Evripidou, it’s all part of a broader strategy of “continuous and unpredictable policing.” He says the goal isn’t to punish well-meaning drivers who might be a few kilometers over the limit, but to curb dangerous driving where it matters most.
There is a buffer, he clarified. On highways, drivers can go up to 120 km/h even though the official limit is 100 km/h, thanks to an informal 20% tolerance rule. Within city streets, the allowance is 10% plus 2km. So if the limit is 50 km/h, you're technically okay up to 57 km/h. Near roundabouts, where limits drop to 30 km/h, the cut-off is 35 km/h.
But still, over 15,500 speeding complaints have been recorded so far this year, and about 150 new violations are issued daily, according to police data.
Radar or ambush?
Citizens continue to complain that the police are setting up radars in ways that aren’t exactly transparent. Some say officers are hiding in unmarked cars or standing out of sight, tactics that feel more like ambushes than fair warnings.
Evripidou doesn’t deny it. “Yes, we do that. And yes, we’ll keep doing it,” he said. “If we want to reduce fatalities, we can’t make our presence obvious everywhere. That defeats the purpose.”
Not a permanent fixture, but close
Addressing concerns that some cameras are placed permanently in the same few spots, Evripidou clarified that radars aren’t there daily, but they are deployed regularly in places where speeding tends to spike.
He stressed that there’s a plan and that these aren’t just quick-fix placements. “We’re not setting up radars like we’re planting trees,” he quipped. “There’s a strategy.”
