Sad Welsh police

[Will_M]

Could not believe what i just heard on the radio....

Welsh police set up speed traps on the road sections between the rally sections of the now welsh rally and have caught 'speeding' many of the top name drivers!!!

Are the police really so deprived of real police work?? That for easy convictions they feel the need to set up speed traps for this event?

One word... SAD

Makes me angry!

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[ccscott49]

Bloody pathetic! Prats!

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[Twister_Ken]

Good call

Nothing like a few hi-profile nickings to persuade Dai Llewellyn in his souped-up Morris Marina that speed limits are for everyone.

Now, if only the Welshpigs could bring their speed traps down to the Southcoast and collar a few PWCers for dangerous driving.

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.writeforweb.com/twister1>Let's Twist Again</A>

 

[NigeCh]

It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

I live just off the A4 to the west of Reading. The local authority changed the speed limit signs overnight from 50 to 40. The speed limit had been the same for over 30 years. The scum police put an unmarked white van with a hidden camera inside it. I got caught doing 48 mph ELEVEN times in 2 days and got 11 brown envelopes before I noticed that the speed limit had changed.

So I went to Court and challenged whether any local authority could change the speed limit signs OVERNIGHT and not give due warning to the motorist .... And the answer was that they could, but had to give due notice or issue warning signs if the traffic lights had changed or that there was a new roundabout ... but NOT if they changed the speed limit.

So I'm now an illegal driver ... So screw the Local Authority and the scumbag police.

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[paulrossall]

Re: It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

Actions like this only hurt the normal law-abiding person. All those in stollen, illegal vehicles etc. get away with it. If I lost my licence in these circumstance I would be furious, but had better not say any more.
Sorry to here your story. Paul
PS Have no sympathy for Rally Drivers breaking an established speed limit. Why the hell should they put all our lives at risk, just in the name of sport, to earn themselves money and to show off to the public as to how they can drive a car near to its limits. You would not allow a Power Boat race in a congested harbour approach would you?

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[Twister_Ken]

Re: It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

It's also the hero effect. If Macrae or Burns can do 110 along the public highway and not get pulled, then chummy in his penile extension Mitsubarota feels that he can do the same, on 5% of the skill level.

<hr width=100% size=1><A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.writeforweb.com/twister1>Let's Twist Again</A>

 

[bigmart]

The Police everywhere are the same. A waste of both your & my money & space.

I recently had someone discharging a High powered Air Gun into my garden (I live in Hampshire). My Wife telephoned the Police to report the 2 broken windows caused by this shortly after 5 O'clock in the evening. At 6-30 no police had arrived I called the Hampshire call centre & was told that they were aware of the call but it was not considered urgent. Ive got 3 kids & 2 cats that could have been injured by this. I called again at 7-30 still no Do-nut munchers (as my kids call them. They have seen this & many other occaisions where the Boys in Blue have proved themselves useless.) I registered my complaint. Plod finally turned up at nearly 8-30. The gun hasn't been seen or heard since but I have no apology or follow up report on the incident from Plod.

They have put a 30 MPH speed limit on a piece of road near me that is out in the country with no houses or habitation of any kind on it & I still get caught by the speed traps occaisionally. The brown envelopes arrive faster than the police do to a real crime.

Is it any surprise that there is no respect for the Law anymore.

Martin

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[Captain_Chaos]

Re: It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

Look lads, its quite simple, given the choice would you rather go after
a) some hairy arsed burglar / crack crazed mugger/ a gun totting yardie boy/ drug fuelled driver of a stolen car or
b) an ordinary motorist who breaks a speed limit.

Clue. candidates in class a are probably living on benefits / dont give stuff about the law / might just get nasty / will not pay their fines. Candidates in class b are generally law abiding, are a soft touch and will pay up without a whimper.

The police lost my respect years ago having seen their action ( I mean sloth) when I was the victim of a number of burglaries and malicious damage. In one notable incident when a pair of yobbos had just caused about £2k worth of damage to my car, our intrepid police force only stirred themselves into action when they were told that i had given chase to the purpetrators. Lest you think this was a valiant response on the part of Plod, their concern was that i may break the law and attack the criminals. Pathetic

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[longjohnsilver]

Re: It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

So how many penalty points have they given you, presumably a ban? And £660 in fines? A bloody disgrace, there's far too much of this going on, if they keep on reducing the speed limits at the rate they are now we'll soon all be driving backwards! And they wonder why road congestion is getting worse!!

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[Sybarite]

Re: It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

It's a proven fact that only 3% of accidents happen at over 80mph. This should therefore be made a minimum speed if we really want to reduce accidents.

John

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[nicho]

Re: It\'s not just them (non boaty - just a gripe)

Ken,

Whilst I too have some sympathy for the rally guys that were caught (I was one of them for over 30 years, and for a number of years co-drove for Colin McRae's dad, Jimmy), they really do not have any excuse. The average speeds they have to maintain on road sections are a mere 30 mph (50mph on motorways). They cannot book into controls early, so there should be no rush. These days the organisers do a good job keeping the thousands of spectators cars away from rally route, so the problems we used to encounter with jammed roads preventing us from getting to Time Controls on time should not apply.

I fear they really have no excuse, and don't do sport any more good than do brawling Leeds Rugby players. I do however abhor the way these speed traps are "set up", especially when high profile policing would do a much better job of reducing speeds/accidents than hidden cameras - it's nothing to do with revenue of course!!

PS By the way Dai (David) Llewellin was one of the UK's top rally drivers in the 80's, not in a Morris Minor though!!

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[Jacket]

I think you're blaming the wrong people.

My brother's in the police, finished his probation period just over a year ago. He's now in charge of his watch, which consists of just him and one probationer (it should have 5 people). He has to cover an area of roughly 400 square miles. This is typical for much of the country. The police just don't have the funds to provide the required manpower.

So while someone shooting at your house is serious, just remember that the watch in your area was quite possibly having to deal with an RTA with multiple casualties, a mugging and a domestic violence incident, all with two officers.

Yes, there's lots of money being spent on catching speeding motorists, but its not the police who have decided to spend the money. The government has decided that they want to crack down on sppeding, so have assigned lumps of money for this cause. The police have no choice in how they spend the money. Ask any member of the police and they'll tell you that they'd much rather spend the money on employing more police for combating more serious crimes.

Having said that, most fatal accidents (something like 85%, as far as I can remeber) are caused by people speeding. There are far too many fatal road accidents - I've known two people killed in road accidents in the last ten years - so I've very little patience for people who speed (by which I mean those doing 50 in 30 zones, not people doing 80 down the motorway).

And for those who say "Yes, but I'm a good driver, so its OK that I'm driving fast", my brothers comment is that he's been told this by the drivers involved in just about every RTA he's attended.

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[TwoStroke]

Checking the local camera site down here in Sussex, this sums it up:

Location of mobile cameras

Monday, July 28:
None.

Tuesday 29:
None.

Wednesday 30:
None.

Thursday 31:
None.

Friday, August 1:
Bognor Regis - B2166 Aldwick Road;
Worthing - A2031 Offington Lane;
Aldingbourne - A29.

Saturday 2:
Eastbourne 999 show.

Sunday 3:
Eastbourne 999 show.

'Please note: There is reduced activity because of camera operators' annual leave.'

We can all have some fun then!! /forums/images/icons/wink.gif



<hr width=100% size=1>How much to fill'er up!

 

[ccscott49]

85% are caused by speeding? I'm not sure thats quite true, some of the people may have been speeding, yes, and it may well have been a contribution to the seriousness of the accident, but the cause of the accident? Unlikely, I would say more likely to be people who cannot drive properly at any speed. IMHO.

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[vyv_cox]

In a recent TV programme on this subject a police spokesman cited inexperience as the biggest factor in RTAs. A driver with 6 month's experience doing 60 mph down a country lane is a different case from someone with 30 years experience doing the same thing. On the other hand, the latter may decide, based on his experience, that 60 is too much.

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[Will_M]

TwoStroke

TwoStroke..

"Checking the local camera site in Sussex" Whats the web address please?

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[bigmart]

The police are to blame in as much as they condone this type of revenue collection from innocent motorists by enforcing the law without argument , or protest.

In the case that I cited regarding the shooting I was told, by the officer that finally attended, that the incident was not reported to the local station (400 Yards from my house) until 8.00 O,Clock.

The Speed trap I mentioned is on a dead straight A road (30 MPH where you could do 60MPH safely) & not a house within hundreds of yards. There is no way that this limit is in place for any other reason than to gain revenue.

Of course speed kills in the situation & I don't think you will find anyone here who seriously claims to be a perfect driver. Its being exploited for revenue & statistical gain that annoys the average person.

The Police must shoulder their share of the responsibility for exploiting the relatively innocent for there own political & financial gain. It's much easier to target a basically honest section of society, who will pay their fines, no matter how unfair, than it is to chase real criminals.

Martin

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[TwoStroke]

Re: TwoStroke

They up date each week for you:

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.sussexsafetycameras.gov.uk>http://www.sussexsafetycameras.gov.uk</A>

Of course I only found this site after I was stopped 2mins from home. /forums/images/icons/frown.gif

<hr width=100% size=1>How much to fill'er up!

 

[Rob_Webb]

Wrong title

3 words are not necessary in this title. 2 will do. Keep the word 'Sad' and then follow it with just 1 of the other 2 words - either one works fine. Take your pick.....

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[Evadne]

I hate to spoil a good story but...

Having just listened to the "real" story on the radio, (4 not 1), said rally drivers were in their own cars proceeding BETWEEN rally stages. They can do what they like when rallying but in their own cars on public roads they have to obey the same laws as the rest of us. One was clocked at 70mph+ in a 30mph limit, no race marshals or barriers there, and if it was outside my front door I'd want to see the bugger nicked. If one of them knocked down your kid at that speed, I'm sure you'd have a different outlook on this topic. Not a million miles from a PWC in a peaceful anchorage, IMHO.

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