Thursday, August 4, 2011

Barton blitz: local speedsters worst offenders

Barton blitz: local speedsters worst offenders
• Most of the drivers nabbed for speeding by Yass police during their two week Barton blitz were from the Yass Valley or the ACT.

The Barton Highway is classified as one of the most dangerous roads in the state yet commuters still continue to speed.
Yass police picked up 55 drivers for speeding on the Barton Highway during their two week blitz in July; 49 of these were from the Yass Valley or the ACT.

“The idea that it is out-of-towners speeding on our roads just doesn’t hold up with these kinds of numbers,” council’s road safety officer Alison Beresford said.

“Local people are placing the lives of their neighbours, friends, and family at risk by exceeding the speed limit.”

The police also conducted 730 random breath tests during the 14 days and charged two drivers with drink driving. One returned a high-range reading and the other was a learner driver. “

It’s disappointing that someone at the beginning of their driving career would choose to break the law. All NSW learners, P1 and P2 drivers have a zero blood alcohol content, which means no driving if there is any alcohol at all in your system. It’s just not worth it,” Ms Beresford said.

Yass highway patrol acting Sergeant Mat Carroll said police also handed out 10 fines over the two-week period including fines for not wearing a seatbelt, driving unlicensed and driving an unregistered car. Despite the numbers from this operation, statistics showed a drop in the vehicle speeds along the Barton, when comparing data gathered before and after the May Barton blitz.

“Highlighting the dangers of driving at speeds over the limit and reinforcing that the police are out there on our roads does affect people’s long term behaviour.

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