Road safety is a priority in both my Local Police & Crime and Fire & Rescue Plans and if I am re-elected in May it will stay there. Why? Because many of you told me that this matters to you. You told me that you want protection from those who drive under the influence of drugs or drugs, those who use excessive speed and those who think it is ok not to insure or MOT their vehicles.
My deputy, Helen Fisher, and I decided to co-chair the Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership, SSRP, which brings together Councils, National Highways, Police and Fire & Rescue to reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured on our roads. The SSRP will enforce speeding in high accident areas but also seeks to educate road users and pedestrians and inform where highways engineers can make change to reduce the risk of accidents. Of course some accidents are due to driver fatigue, loss of concentration or health issues such as strokes or heart attacks, but not all.
Speeding was a factor in a substantial proportion of the 42 accidents in which 44 people lost their lives in 2023. To help limit speed in some of the dangerous locations the SSRP has installed 19 new fixed cameras this year with more to come in 2024. Four new Camera Safety Vans are out across the county and new cameras that work in low light are being trialled to facilitate enforcement throughout the day.
Helen has worked tirelessly to support our Community Speed Watch, CSW, teams who numbered 402 at the end of 2022, 77 more than 2022, these are community minded people with the safety of their friends and neighbours most at heart and they deserve our thanks and support. Their activity triggers letters to remind drivers of the risks that speeding pose.
Helen has represented me at numerous road safety events. Here she is at a recent one with our defence partners. https://fb.watch/pQVOWW-zgu/
Finally the Staffordshire Roads Policing Unit are on the look out for improperly maintained vehicles and erratic driving that might indicate drivers who are intoxicated, distracted by mobile phones. They will conduct speed checks in areas where camera safety vans can’t be safely located and use automatic number plate recognition cameras, ANPR, and other means to identify vehicles without MOTs, tax or insurance.
Despite all the activity and investment detailed above 44 people tragically lost their lives on Staffordshire’s roads in 2023. The impact of this on their friends and family is enormous so road safety will remain a priority in my local plans should I be re-elected. It is simply too important.