Police Officer Accused of Dangerous Driving at 159mph
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BBC Midlands Today reported that Police officer Mark Milton is in Ludlow Magistrates Court accused of speeding and dangerous driving. Allegedly he drove an unmarked Police car at speeds up to 159mph in December 2003 on the M54 near Telford. Mark Milton denies speeding and dangerous driving.
Safe Speed says that such cases highlight the yawning gulf between fact and official propaganda when it comes to speeding and speed limits.
Paul Smith, founder of the Safe Speed road safety campaign (www.safespeed.org.uk) explains: "Many assume that 'the higher the speed the bigger the danger' but reality is far more complex. Often 20mph is dangerously fast in crowded places yet 159mph is fairly routine and not considered dangerous on the German autobahns in suitable conditions. Clearly safety cannot be judged by the number on the speedometer - it can only be judged with full reference to the prevailing conditions."
Paul continues: "The vast majority of dangerous speeds on our roads are well within the speed limit. The government must wake up to the fact that there's far more to setting a safe and appropriate speed than obeying the number on the sign. They should be helping drivers to use speed wisely, not giving out the dangerously oversimplified message that 'you'll be safe if you stick to the speed limit'".
New camera vans positioned on the M4 motorway are apparently ticketing drivers filmed at over 79mph, yet the Police routinely train their drivers at speeds in excess of 130mph on public roads. These two police behaviours cannot both be morally justified. Safe Speed says enforcement must concentrate on danger, not simple legality.
Paul concludes: "It's very important that no one drives too fast, but 'too fast' depends on the conditions and not the speed limit. The message given to drivers in the speed camera era is dangerously oversimplified - £700 million pounds of speeding fines have been issued to 12 million drivers and the roads are getting more dangerous - deaths are up. Speed camera policy has completely failed. We have to get back to the road safety policies and practices that gave us the safest roads in the world in the first place."
Reference Material:
PC Milton not guilty despite 159mph
Safe Speed says that such cases highlight the yawning gulf between fact and official propaganda when it comes to speeding and speed limits.
Paul Smith, founder of the Safe Speed road safety campaign (www.safespeed.org.uk) explains: "Many assume that 'the higher the speed the bigger the danger' but reality is far more complex. Often 20mph is dangerously fast in crowded places yet 159mph is fairly routine and not considered dangerous on the German autobahns in suitable conditions. Clearly safety cannot be judged by the number on the speedometer - it can only be judged with full reference to the prevailing conditions."
Paul continues: "The vast majority of dangerous speeds on our roads are well within the speed limit. The government must wake up to the fact that there's far more to setting a safe and appropriate speed than obeying the number on the sign. They should be helping drivers to use speed wisely, not giving out the dangerously oversimplified message that 'you'll be safe if you stick to the speed limit'".
New camera vans positioned on the M4 motorway are apparently ticketing drivers filmed at over 79mph, yet the Police routinely train their drivers at speeds in excess of 130mph on public roads. These two police behaviours cannot both be morally justified. Safe Speed says enforcement must concentrate on danger, not simple legality.
Paul concludes: "It's very important that no one drives too fast, but 'too fast' depends on the conditions and not the speed limit. The message given to drivers in the speed camera era is dangerously oversimplified - £700 million pounds of speeding fines have been issued to 12 million drivers and the roads are getting more dangerous - deaths are up. Speed camera policy has completely failed. We have to get back to the road safety policies and practices that gave us the safest roads in the world in the first place."
Reference Material:
PC Milton not guilty despite 159mph
posted by Jon Fry at 9:24:00 AM
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