Update to Regulations
A lot of riders utilize GPS systems. Some of those systems have a function that will show you where the speed cameras are. Under updated traffic laws, these speed camera alerts in GPS systems are illegal. According to MoreBikes, TomTom and Garmin sent out notices to their customers to let them know that they should not use this feature that’s built into the GPS system. If they do, they could be fined 75 Euros.
Granted, it will be extremely hard for German police to enforce this. If riders are using the system and therefore riding within the speed limit, there should be no reason for them to receive a ticket or get pulled over. That means there will be little chance for a police officer to know if a rider is using a speed camera alert system on his or her GPS system or smartphone.
Still, this legislation could have an impact on future GPS systems and smartphone apps. Now that the feature is outlawed, it’s likely that it will stop being offered by Garmin, TomTom, and GPS smartphone app developers. German officials don’t want riders to know where the speed cameras are.
While I get that the German government wants people to ride under the speed limit, this seems more like a money grab to me. If riders don’t know where the speed cameras are, a lot more traffic citations will be written. It will be interesting to see if similar legislation appears in other areas of the world.