Crackdown on Shawbury speeders
Monday 31st January 2011, 1:35PM GMT.
A crackdown on speeding motorists is due to begin on a rural road in north Shropshire today after shock new figures showed two-thirds of drivers ignore the limit.
The operation is being launched on the B5063 Wem Road in Shawbury following concerns from residents that lives were being put at risk.
A new mobile speed enforcement site is being created in the village to encourage drivers to comply with the 30mph speed limit past the entrance to the RAF airbase.
The West Mercia Safer Roads Partnership has set up the scheme as part of its community concern programme, which was launched in 2009.
Data collected by partnership officials shows that there is a speed problem on Wem Road, where 68 per cent exceed the 30mph speed limit and 15 per cent travel above 39mph.
The new speed check site will be operational for an initial period of six months and data will be collected during this time to assess the impact of enforcement on speeds and driver behaviour.
It is hoped that a speed camera van will significantly reduce the number of speeding drivers.
Katy Jenkins, of the Safer Roads Partnership in West Mercia, said: “Members of the local community have expressed their concern about the speeds of vehicles using this road and the potential danger they pose to other road users.
“We are launching speed enforcement in direct response to these concerns and it is hoped that the speed camera van will encourage drivers to comply with the speed limit.”
Councillor Simon Jones, Shropshire Council member for Shawbury, said: “I am really pleased that enforcement action is now being taken.”
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What’s the betting that this 30MPH limit was once (until recently) much higher and been reduced unneccesarily?
If the majority of drivers are ignoring it, then it proves that the limit is incorrectly set.
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Or they could have a total disreguard the law and the safety of others.
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Arn’t laws supposed to be set to protect the majority?
Traffic regulations stipulate that speed limits should be set to cater for the majority, it used to be called the 85percentile rule.
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Policing by press release it’s the way forward!!!!!
I don’t know why they don’t just employ one extra press officer and for each post created make 10 patrol officers redundant. That’ll really put the fear of good into the motorists. But only Mon-Fri 9-5 :-)
Cripes, better watch how I go, before I know it there’ll be men in gabardine macs, trilbys( with requisite PRESS ticket in the band) armed with a Silvine red note book and freshly licked HB pencil.
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Once again West Mercia Constabulary, oops sorry! Police, strikes alarm and fear into the general public by proxy.
But dear Pitkin, instead of employing extra press officers at the expense of real officer why not come at this from the opposite angle. Radical thinking I know but why not get rid of aforementioned press officers and employ some extra real Policemen.
Has the Police force always had Policemen? Yes!
Does the Police force always needed Policemen? Yes!
Has the Police force always had press officers? No!
Does the Police force always need press officers? No!
I am certain that there are superior ranks who could be torn away from their spread sheets and Custard Creams long enough to spin the media a tale or two.
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I see your point, but in these times of great austerity, what is cheaper, the salaries of 10 officers or 1 press officer with a rose-tinted perspective of themself?
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What would be useful here are some statistics on how many accidents occurred in the area broken down by cause.
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