Cheshire Police target speeding motorists

Cheshire Police will be targeting speeding motorists as part of a Europe-wide enforcement operation.

The operation, organised by the European Traffic Police Network (TISPOL), will run from 16-26 April.

Cheshire Police hope that it will raise the awareness of road users that reducing your speed can save lives.

Sergeant Bradley Hughes said: “Many people think of speeding as a minor offence, but the fact is people are being killed and seriously injured on our roads because of motorists driving at excessive speed.

“While travelling a couple of miles over the speed limit may not seem like much – A pedestrian hit at 40mph is four times more likely to be killed than being hit at 30mph– which is why we are committed to doing all we can to tackle this issue.”

The latest national figures suggest that speeding is a contributory factor in 15.1% of all fatal collisions in the UK, leading to 222 deaths in 2015 alone.

Throughout the week-long operation officers from the Force Roads Policing Team will be proactively targeting offending motorist on a number of problem routes across the county.

Meanwhile, officers from the force Local Policing units will also be conducting speed enforcement operations on roads where concerns have been raised by local residents.

David Keane, Police and Crime Commissioner for Cheshire, said: “I fully support this campaign to stamp out speeding on our roads. Too many people are being seriously or fatally injured because of the careless actions of speeding drivers.

“Road safety is a major concern for many of the residents that I represent across Cheshire, and I am pleased to see that the constabulary is taking part in this international campaign to crack down on speeding and help save lives.”

As part of the operation officers are keen for local residents to get involved, either by joining a local Speed Watch group or by logging on to the Cheshire police website and reporting concerns or issues over speeding in their communities.

Any intelligence received will reviewed by officers, who will look to see what action can be taken and work with the local authority to see if measures can put in place to combat the issue.

Sergeant Bradley Hughes added: “While this operation is only running for one week, we take the same approach all year round, excessive and inappropriate speed is simply unacceptable and anyone who breaks the law will be dealt with in the most appropriate manner.”

To report speeding in your community visit: https://www.cheshire.police.uk/advice-and-support/roads-and-vehicle-safety/speeding/

Editor: Concentrating on speeding isn’t the answer. I’m all for tackling bad driving – but speeding is just a small part of that problem. There’s speeding and there’s dangerous and inconsiderate driving – which I seem to witness every day driving around Macclesfield.

To be honest I’m more concerned about tackling crime– burglary, theft, criminal damage, etc –  or is that too old-fashioned a concept for Cheshire Police?