And not because he has six points on his licence…
Meredydd Hughes tells "Autocar" that policing our roads must be about much more than speed cams….
Quote:
We have to be single minded about road safety and not single issue
Blimey … heavens ..
nope checked the photos – very slight superficial resemblance to IG
though...
A fan of ANPR
– and unfortunately SPECS
which he hopes to “sell” to a sceptical majority
(No chance .. the scam of the one in London which made serious errors in a 20 mph zone will remain etched in 
memories of several thousand Londoners ….)However, he admits that he has a hard job of explaining the merits to a motoring public who quite frankly have lost much of their traditional trust in the police as a result of nonsensical prosecutions.
A huge task indeed
.. picking up the baton from Brainstorm whose draconian stance has made him a national hate figure and everyone is waiting to see him get pinged by his own scams.
Hughes refuses to criticise his mate
– claiming Dick is the reason why road policing is such prominent news
and why there is a debate.
(Hah – it’s because of Paul and his pals in the ABD etc daring to challenge the policy you mean! )
Prominent news for the wrong reasons :bangheaad: – makes driving and cycling seem far too dangerous – and an emotional annual figure of 10 deaths per day is pretty insignificant when you consider how many die each day because we cannot afford to prescribe drugs like Mabthera, Fuzeon, Herceptin… etc…and waiting lists statistics are given the same open heart massage as all other government stats (education, police, health)_ to con us all of “delivery of empty promises” Quote:
Hughes is still adamant that speed cams are a cost effective way of reducing casualties.
Er – if they reduce – we see a reduction in the 10 per day and this is just not happening. #
The only “cost effectiveness” lies in reductions of traffic police…we don’t see them.
Quote:
But he welcomes breaking the link between cam revenue and fincancing new ones and does not see the need for more, In fact – he claims to have ordered the removal of some in S Yorks which he viewed as “sited confrontationally”
Ah .. how pee –cee… He means of course that they raked in hard cash
…
Quote:
At a Police Federation Conference he admitted to two speed cam penalties – but reckoned “he’d been getting away with speeding for far too long in 20 years.”
Er – I thought one should have taught him something given his “enhanced training” per the T2K hype
Quote:
“I decided to sharpen up – driving is a privilege you earn by passing a test and then by continuing to obey the laws society puts in place. If you cannot do that then you should not be allowed to drive”
Um – so about the uninsured .. and never ever licenced chavs.,…
Oh and by the way – my wife said that driving was a privilege earned by right of passing a test and continuing to seek improvement and accept a set of responsible values in one of her very first rants on PH.
But our version is more about COAST observation - through which method a safe (usually compliant – extreme safe UK motorway stretches, A’bahn and track , events apart
) speed , which may be below the lolly and certainly observing every darned hazard potential at all times – It;s not 100% foolproof - but certainly safer in terms of attentive, observant and considerate driving than blindly believing “30 mph is a harmless speed because the lolly and the camera say so”
We also follow the set of principles on our bikes, motorbikes and horses (some of this family ride these beasties)
Quote:
Unlike his predecessor – Hughes admits traffic cops have been taken from the roads – but still maintains they are “investigating serious organised crimes and fighting terrorism and gun running!”
Yeah… right … We have less terrorist attacks than in the height of IRA atrocities – and political correctness appears to deter nicking our known fundamentalists – we did not notice anyone rushing to lock up Hamza until Dubya got involved by waving extradition papers and Littlejohn in the Mail sees his arrest and trial as means to delay his transfer to the USA.
Terrorism then – is what is is … an excuse and smoke screen for the reality – and ifg the threat of terrorism is so great – why is Manchester about to axe 200 Policemen as cash runs out? Surely they are needed as Manchester is a prime target – especially after its refurb after the 1996 IRA atrocity…
But we note S Yorks has found enough cash to restore 12 traffic cops to former glory and patrols. – and we need police around to check uninsured, drunks and to provide the same excellence as PC Searle and Ian H..
Hughes plans to look at many subjects close to our hearts (HA – he lurks – all been discussed on here – often
– and he appears to have taken in some of the suggestions…)
(must lurk then
)
Quote:
1.
A review of all speed limits with a view to eliminating the daft anomalies
2. Changes indrug driving laws - including testing for impairment (er – we need cops for this… )
3. Better and cheaper insurance for new and young drivers- restricting type of cars.
Where we disagree is “pay as you go” as this can really increase to frightening levels – especially when the youngster is away at Uni and condescends to visit his old Papa and his Mama with his term’s laundry… not to mention trips to grandparents in the Alps… 4. Another look at drink driving – in the light of the rise (er – it’s because cams don’t catch drunks…)
5. A review of the accident stats – to understand why there are some gains
(Hey – he reckons it’s down to the improvements in modern medicine.. well …well.. 6. Attention to better signing and positioning of signs. Hughes attended a fatal in the past – the driver collided with the “Welcome to .. “ sign.
Hughes reckons his three year stint will be difficult and proposes to refrain from making “arrogant and sensational sound bites”
(Oooh – a dig there at We can guess … ooooh-er!) We need to make gradual cultural shifts whereby people improve by taking pride in doing things that bit better. He has been lurking… )
Finally Hughes recounts an accident he attended as a young BiB in Wales and shades of recent tragedy…
“I attended an incident in Cardiff when I was a young sergeant. A car had skidded on ice and hit a sand lorry – and the car driver died. The truck driver was in a hideous state – completely inconsolable. The deceased was putting on his seatbelt at the time and he went through the windscreen. We found his dentures 100 yards away. It was the indignity of his death and the waste that I think of.”
But icy road – would a camera have prevented it?
It was the collision with the heavier vehicle – possibly in the days before crumple zones which caused the kinetic force…. But then the indignity of dying slowly from a lurgy which practical use of a condom and some basic hygiene fills me with a strong sense of a wasted life/lives with much value to offer....and a sense of sadness when the person loses that fight for life.
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