Safe Speed Forums

Hi,

New to this forum, thought you might like to see copies of correspondence I've had with the RAC


Sent this to the RAC last week after the report they filed


"Can someone please explain why the RAC press and media dept come out with what appears to be" PC" statements that pander to the current Govenments woefully misguided transport/policing policies and to those self appointed, so called road safety experts.
In my humble opinion these statements do not reflect the views of the motoring public or the membership of the RAC, or in my case, The RAC/MSA."

They responded along these lines, had to adjust etc to avoid copyright, etc



"Thanks for taking the time to email the RAC.

The Report on Motoring presents the opinions and behaviours of (1074) of British motorists who we speak to in order to understand their concerns and beliefs.

The full RAC report articulates a much wider set of views than was polarised by the media when we launched it. The media seeks to focus on wild extremes,whereas our Report demonstrates a range of opinions and possible policy approaches that might be taken to get to the bottom of the behaviour of particularly the most dangerous set of drivers, who admit to speeding excessively, drink driving, drug driving etc - and are probably the cause of most accidents.

The RAC believes it is this set of motorists who we must tackle most closely, rather than bearing down on the thankfully largely law-abiding majority."


I then replied thus,



I understand what you say about the press, they are hounds at the best of times and love the scent of blood, which is why you at the RAC need to be so
careful about what you say and how you group/classify the various people you wish to home in on. You can't fall into the trap of holding "speeders" or even "excessive speeders" as in any way on the same level as Drink/drunk drivers, joyriders, car thieves, reckless and dangerous drivers, feckless numpties who invade our roads without any real idea of what is happening around them, morons, and the all to frequent lobotomised chav/teenagers who wrestles with their one functioning brain cell for the ability to talk,(well, make grunting noises), and chew at the same time.

These are the people that KILL on our roads, and it is this governments inability to understand this whilst listening to self appointed so called
road safety experts with political and/or grief related agendas which insures that the carnage will continue. The focus on speeding is totally wrong, as are speed camera's, good for stealth taxes and revenue, but nothing else,the trouble is, these camera's are replacing police officers, so now all the would be killers are even freer to roam and destroy people and lives,because camera's only catch speeders.

I don't generally adhere to speed limits, never have, I've been driving since 1968 and have never been involved in any serious accidents, a few close shaves maybe, but that about it. I am also a MSA/RAC
racing driver holding an International "C" licence and must admit that in terms of the general standards out there, I might be in the top 5% along with other very experienced, highly trained drivers. Add to this say, 20% of drivers, at best ,that are basically "Good" in driving terms and you have the one's you should be talking to, not a selection of 1074 motorists picked at random.

Following your method only 268 of them will have a clue of what they are talking about,and of them, only 53 will be really experienced thus leaving your survey with 806 motorists on a sliding scale from average, at best, to total feckless morons.

You have access to thousands of well qualified drivers ranging from the emergency services, armed forces, and similar,to the memberships of the MSA and perhaps other quality drivers or driving oganisations, please use these resources, don't leave it to people who are not qualified to offer an opinion.

regards

Rod Barrett.



Prehaps I'm right, maybe wrong, it's a bit flowery, but it might get the point accross

Rod,

Well done I too have had several communications with RAC, as have others here and Paul.

The more people who do engage with the RAC the better.

What the RAC wrote was shameful and any member with sense ought to tell them they are not representing their members best interests.

What's going on here I thought that the RAC had nothing to do with how you drive your car. True, it may comment on a few things, but I always thought that the RAC was an organisation that gives roadside assistance in the event of your vehicle breaking down.

Surely there is a vacancy in the marketplace for a "pro-motorist" rescue service. If the greenies can have the ETA, then why can't we have one?

The premiums might also be lower, as I suspect those who care about such issues tend to look after their vehicles better and drive more responsibly and observantly than the average.

I remember reading some complaints about poor service from the ETA on a cycling newsgroup which rather creased me up

_________________
"Show me someone who says that they have never exceeded a speed limit, and I'll show you a liar, or a menace." (Austin Williams - Director, Transport Research Group)

Any views expressed in this post are personal opinions and may not represent the views of Safe Speed