Public put ‘speeding motorists’ in top three local concerns as views shape policing priorities for year ahead
Feedback from the public has put road safety as one of local communities’ top three concerns, prompting a call from Chief Constable Sir Stephen House for a review of road user behaviour and its contribution to the numbers of deaths and injuries on Scotland’s roads.
The Chief Constable was speaking in Stirling today (March 18) as he visited a roadside policing campaign with Transport Minister Derek Mackay and Road Safety Scotland Director Michael McDonnell.
Chief Constable Sir Stephen House said:
“It’s one of the top concerns consistently raised in the public feedback we get from communities – that’s why it’s one of my top priorities for Police Scotland.
“Recent research has shown there is a prevailing attitude where many drivers frequently consider themselves as safe drivers, whereas the evidence suggests otherwise with more than two thirds (68%) of all drivers admitting to risky or illegal driving in the past year.
“More people are killed on our roads than are murdered each year – to me this is unacceptable and to many of our local communities it is unacceptable. The impact on families and our communities is nothing less than devastating yet as a society we can sometimes be immune to its impact which is why we need to look at our approach to ensure we cover every stage of life from the very young to the elderly to influence and encourage positive driving behaviour.
“Our last consultation surveyed more than 40,000 people (43,119), an increase of almost 30% and we are committed to building on that more each year. By listening to the concerns of Scotland’s communities, we can ensure those views inform our policing priorities.”
Transport Minister Derek Mackay said:
“Road safety is an absolute priority and our Road Safety Framework contains an ultimate vision of zero fatalities on our roads.
“That is why we are working with our road safety partners, including Police Scotland, to deliver a range of engineering, education and enforcement measures. The Framework outlines eight priority areas for action, including tackling speeding and drink driving. During 2014 we saw progress being made in these areas with the introduction of the average speed camera system on the A9 and a lower drink drive limit in Scotland.
“In addition to these significant achievements there is work being undertaken by all of our road safety partners to meet the 96 commitments contained in the Framework such as investments in infrastructure at a local and national level, the educational initiatives developed by Road Safety Scotland aimed at young people and our work with the Scottish Occupational Road Safety Alliance to promote the positive benefits of managing risks around those who drive for work.
“We also support our law enforcement agencies in taking appropriate action against anyone putting lives at risk, be that by speeding, using a mobile phone or not wearing a seatbelt whilst driving.
“We have achieved significant progress towards our goals but there is still work that can and will be done.”
Michael McDonnell, Director of Road Safety Scotland, said:
“Whether you’ve just passed your test or you’ve been driving for years you should always aim to be a safe and responsible driver.
“We provide a full suite of educational resources for children throughout their nursery, primary and secondary school education that is aligned to Curriculum for Excellence. We also provide information for those drivers who have held their licence for many years and are seeking to influence long term driver behaviour through our award winning ‘Kids in the Car’ campaign encouraging parents to be aware of the impact their driving behaviour has on even the youngest children.
“Driving is an every-day activity for many in the population but it is not without its risks. However, with agencies involved working closely together to deliver for all road users, irrespective of their mode of transport or age, we can make real strides in moving towards our target of no fatalities on Scotland’s roads.”
A recent Driver Attitudes and Behaviour study has indicated that police activity has had a preventative impact on reducing risky and illegal driving behaviours amongst the public. This includes the numbers of drivers admitting to:
• A reduction in overall risk taking behaviour decreasing from 79% to 68%
• Illegal risk taking behaviour decreasing from 58% to 48%
• Speeding down from 68% to 58%
The report also showed an increasing awareness of the penalties for speeding, mobile phones and seatbelt offences and an associated impact on their driving behaviour.
Inspector Neil Hewitson, of the Dumfries and Galloway Division Roads Policing Unit said “here in Dumfries and we have worked hard for many years to keep our roads safe for all users. We have a large roads network in the region and with our partners in the Road Safety Partnership we look at many ways to ensure that those who use our roads are kept as safe as possible. We will continue to work to influence driver behaviour, and to enforce the legislation when it is breached. Only this week we have submitted reports to the Procurator Fiscal for cases of what I can only describe as drivers driving at outrageous speeds on our roads. In the first case a 24 year old man from in a BMW car and a 19 year old man from Peebles in a Vauxhall Corsa VXR car were found driving at speeds of up to 123 miles per hour on the A74(M) near Eaglesfield. In another case a 50 year old man from Stranraer was traced driving a BMW motorcycle at over 103 miles per hour on the A75 road at Castle Kennedy, whilst carrying a 15 year old pillion passenger.
“Roads policing officers are on our roads network 24/7 and will continue to take a robust stance with those drivers who put lives at risk through irresponsible and dangerous driver behaviour.”
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