Driving southbound near J39 M1 on Monday I saw a surveyor on the hard shoulder with a yellow tripod as they do. When I got a bit closer I noticed that the theodolite wasn’t yellow it was black and a rather large camera and the bloke behind it was wearing a police uniform. There was a thick cable running up the embankment to a bridge where there were two more policemen.
It’s the first time I’ve seen one of these any ideas what it was? I doubt it was to assist us in any way, more to show us the error of our ways.
There’s not a lot they can do you for really is there on a motorway I mean maybe averaging 56 in roadworks, driving in outside lane or on yer phone that’s about it .
Number plate recognition system. (ANPR)
They’re on the hard shoulder doing this? 
It amazes me that, with the police often being first on scene at fatals, they seem totally ignorant of the risk they’re putting themselves at. The hard shoulder is one of the most dangerous places you can be.
maybe they were surveying the scene of a previous accident at the same time of day to work out the angle of the sun etc etc. i,ve seen that done on m27 and m3. just a thought 
The camera was quite large so I don’t think it was ANPR. I wondered about the wisdom of doing this on the hard shoulder, it was also downhill so speeding LGV’s could have been a target.
It must be said I was committing the heinous crime of eating an apple at the time.
I passed this yesterday around 3ish. It was where the police officer was killed a few months ago when he had stopped to help a broken down car and an arctic ran into them
What ever they were doing it seems daft doing it on the hard shoulder. Was there someoen stood there perminantly or did the officer set up the device then stand up on the embankment?
Your right Max I had forgotten about that which ties in with what Gilbert said. AHT I don’t know this was what I saw as I passed.