Road Toll Keeps Going up While Police Are Busy Barking up The Wrong Tree

RSmith on 20/05/2023 - 10:40
Last edited 23/05/2023 - 14:20 by 1 other user

Another blitz by police…

https://www.drive.com.au/news/police-targeting-speeding-driv…

Like many others in the past. I don't understand why the road toll keeps going up and after every crash leading to a fatality, police regurgitate the same lines…

Speeding was a factor.

A recent crash where a BMW ran a red light and hit a Honda leading to fatalities, the first line from police was… Speeding was a factor, and the second part of their statement was also the fact that the driver of BMW failed to obey the road signs.

https://www.9news.com.au/national/two-killed-in-crash-at-cau…

Speed is easy to measure hence easy to punish the drivers. How someone drives is hard to quantify. Last week I saw a man doing 70 on the eastern freeway. He wasn't speeding, but it was certainly dangerous driving.

If police had a more visible presence, there is actually a possibility of road toll going down. But what we have is an undue emphasis on speed whilst overlooking the other factors leading to road fatalities.

/Rant over.

General Discussion

Comments

  • Odin on 22/05/2023 - 17:39
    +3

    Gov can't backtrack after decades of focusing on speeding.

    That's basically it.

  • ribze1 on 22/05/2023 - 21:32
    +1

    Safer cars is the only reason why deaths have fallen.

  • HangryCakeStore on 23/05/2023 - 04:44

    Police be killing 95 year olds holding a knife or anyone mentally ill, becoming like USA..
    Remember, there are ceos and so many overly rich people more dangerous than

  • DiscoJango on 23/05/2023 - 08:08

    Ozbargain: where every member is the fool you see doing 95 on the right hand lane on the freeway…

  • jaimex2 on 23/05/2023 - 08:50

    Its never been about safety, its always been revenue raising.

    When Police in the country strike for a pay rise the first thing they target is the revenue raising:
    https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/police-to-warn-d…

  • Piratarzt on 23/05/2023 - 10:13

    Response time and stopping distance at 40km/h are much shorter and longer than at 70km/h. That's just high school physics. Speed does kill because humans are not hair triggers and physics exists.

  • foxpants on 23/05/2023 - 11:11

    Don't start me on barking up the wrong tree, the police overreach on scooter riders that are riding on a reasonable manner, obeying speed limits and helmet laws, that possess a scooter that weighs a few kilo's too many are being permanently confiscated and destroyed on a 1st offense.

    Don't get me wrong, people speeding, riding recklessly, without helmets, underaged, more than 1 person on board etc - throw the damn book at them. But police blitzes targeting PSP's during commute times, capturing all the people riding a slightly overweight scooter responsibly is not fixing the damn problem. The laws need reform, the power they have here is astounding, even serial hoons and drinks drivers only get this level of confiscation on their 3rd+ offense ffs.

  • webmonkey on 23/05/2023 - 11:46
    +1

    I get your point OP but in this instance speed was definitely a factor. The (profanity) in the BMW was hooning and was travelling at double the speed limit as estimated by police at point of impact and obliterated that other car. Estimimated at double the 70kmph limit when it hit the other car. I'd say that is pretty crystal clear it was a factor.

  • Seraphin7 on 23/05/2023 - 12:11
    +1

    In my recent (last several years) experience, I rarely see cases of egregious speeding anywhere on the roads (suburban streets, country roads, major motorways). Clearly the combination of jawboning and enforcement has had significant impact on the levels of speeding, at least in my observations.

    Over that same time, however, I've seen a relative explosion in idiotic driving … unsafe U-turns, unsafe/late lane changes, poor ability to drive to conditions, poor situational awareness, poor vehicle control, excessive braking, seemingly no understanding of "give way" requirements, etc., etc. As mentioned above, these items seem not to be policed as they are not necessarily quantitative and actually require a presence, not just the installation of a camera.

    I would assert that while "speed may be a factor" (whatever that means) in many fatal accidents, it's actually the inability of at least one driver to adequately control their vehicle, drive to the totality of the conditions, and/or understand the road rules that becomes the overriding factor in many, if not most instances.

  • Commander Shepard on 23/05/2023 - 19:00

    Seperate rant… I got my motorbike bike rego the other day. Its almost as expensive as my 4cyl Subaru.

  • Eeples on 23/05/2023 - 19:12
    +1

    Ive seen plenty of drivers d a U-turn across double white lines when there is a round-a-bout 300m down the road.

    No F's given seems to be the mantra of many drivers.

    Perhaps the police need a Dash-Cam division in which the general public is encouraged to send dash cams footage of law breaking motorists.

    • factor on 23/05/2023 - 21:17
      +1

      Is your issue the law breaking or was the manoeuvre unsafe?

      In Australia, I'll happily U-turn across double-lines or painted traffic-islands if the nearest vehicle is 100 metres away. Overseas I'll happily run a red-light when that's the norm and it is safe to do so. Neither of those behaviours have ever caused anyone the slightest safety issue.

      There are many legal but unsafe driving actions. There are also many illegal but safe driving actions. Of course there is a very large set of illegal and unsafe actions - but reference to the law is quite imperfect if safety is the desired outcome.

      • Leadfoot6 on 24/05/2023 - 12:15

        Please stay "overseas" for as long as possible.
        Permanently would be better.

  • Cave Fire on 24/05/2023 - 13:40

    In general, research points to positive reinforcement vs negative reinforcement as getting better long term reductions. Could even use both, some type of incentives for better driving or free/subsidized courses. One of the good campaigns was a road safety oath. So people voluntarily pledged and wrote a message on a virtual wall to raise awareness of road safety. The other theoretical ideas include using trackers and paying people for safe driving.

  • foursaken on 24/05/2023 - 13:44

    I really need to stop reading these forums. I could be down the local pub listening to the local derro.

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