2,820 Traffic Offenses

2,820 traffic offences and speeds of up to 154 mph detected in Avon and Somerset during National Road Safety Week

Avon and Somerset Police have dealt with over 2,820 road traffic offences during Road Safety Week16th - 23rd November 202o.

The week, when England was in lockdown 2.0, saw mostly wet roads, often with reduced or poor visibility and conditions which should naturally slow traffic down. Despite this, offences included a motorist driving at 154 mph on an A-road in poor weather, another travelling at 101 mph in fog and one person driving at 80 miles per hour with their hands behind their head. All of these motorists will now be summonsed to court.

Road Safety Week, organised by road safety charity ‘BRAKE’, is an annual event and the biggest road safety awareness event in the UK. This year, the campaign message is “No Need To Speed”.

Speed is one of the ‘Fatal Five’ offences dealt with by police. Others include careless driving, drink and drug driving, not wearing a seat-belt and driver distractions which could include using a mobile phone, listening to music or reading a map. Motorists who commit one of the ‘Fatal Five’ are far more likely to be involved in a fatal collision. Chief Inspector Jason Shears of Avon and Somerset Police said: “Speeding on any road is unacceptable – it is a serious, dangerous and anti-social offence that causes death and injury to thousands of people each year. Some people don’t take the risk of speeding seriously, but our patrols do. We will continue to target those who choose to put others at risk and work all year round to educate on safe driving and the consequences of not doing so.

“We always have our communities’ safety at heart and we thank the public who are increasingly assisting us by uploading Dashcam footage and reporting to our website. This enables us to bring more offenders to justice, helping keep our roads safer for everyone.”

Police and Crime Commissioner Sue Mountstevens added: “During my eight and a half years as PCC, local people have always stressed how concerned they are about road safety, especially regarding speeding. Let’s be clear, speeding is never acceptable but, as proven by the offences from just one single week, a small group of people are ignoring the rules and putting themselves and others at risk.

“We all know what the speed limits are on certain roads and in certain areas, and there really is no reason to ignore such limits that keep you safe. Please take care and respect speed limits at all times.”

The outcomes of Road Safety Week come as Avon and Somerset Police take part in Op Tonic, a nationwide operation targeting motorists who choose to drink/drug drive.

Inappropriate speed is linked to 75 per cent of fatal collisions. It applies not only when the speed limit is exceeded but when the speed travelled is inappropriate for the conditions – including weather, traffic flow, pedestrians or hazards.

“Sadly, speed continues to be an issue both in our communities and on our motorways. Our Speed Enforcement Units (SEUs) are out every week and we work with our Community Speed Watch volunteers, Special Constables and other partners whenever possible, to detect the drivers who put others at risk.

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