Officers launch two-week crackdown on speeding motorists

Everyone has somewhere they want to go to this summer – but make sure you get there safely.

That is the message from roads policing officer across Hampshire and Thames Valley next week.

From August 12, the Joint Roads Policing unit across the two forces is taking part in a national crackdown on speeding.

The aim of the National Police Chiefs’ Council two-week campaign is to remind people of the dangers of speeding and help to ensure everyone has a summer to remember for the right reasons.

The facts speak for themselves.

If you hit a pedestrian at 40mph then they only have a survival chance of 10 per cent, whereas of you hit a pedestrian at 30mph then they have an 80 per cent chance of survival, so please drive appropriately, it's not worth the risk.

Exceeding the speed limit or travelling too fast for the conditions have been shown to be causation factors in 20 per cent of all fatal casualties, 12 per cent of serious casualties and 10 per cent of the total casualties across the JOU region.

Road Safety Sergeant Scott Kerr said: “We know that everyone has lots of exciting plans over the summer, but we want to make sure you all get to your destinations safely.

“A few miles an hour over the speed limit or travelling at inappropriate speed can have catastrophic upon road users and their families, many of whom also suffer lasting and profound consequences from collisions where a loved one has been killed or seriously injured.

“Excessive speed will reduce the time you have to react to a hazard and further the distance it takes for you to stop.

“People need to realise it’s a speed limit and not a target so it may be more appropriate to travel at a lower speed depending on the road conditions for their own safety.

“If everyone drives sensibly and pays full attention to the road ahead then hopefully this can be a summer to remember for the right reasons.”