On the spot fines for bad drivers

Conscript

Conscript

Conscript

Soldato
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Police will get powers to fine careless drivers on the spot, rather than taking them to court, as part of a government strategy to make Britain's roads safer.

Ministers say motorists who tail-gate, undertake or cut others up often go unpunished and that introducing instant penalties would be more efficient.
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BBC News

What do we reckon to this?

I heard this on the news briefly this morning and intitally thought it would be ideal, giving the police more power on the spot to reprimand poor driving without having to go through the courts. It might make drivers think twice if they know they can be slapped on the wrist immediately, as it were.

But another part of me cant help thinking that it will be abused. Some of the offences mentioned seem subjective depending on context...what's the official definition of tailgaiting? We all make mistakes...whats to stop me getting points and a fine if I accidentally cut someone up? What if I get reprimanded but feel I've been wrongly reprimanded by an over zealous police officer? Instead of going to court to argue my case, Im simply slapped with points and a fine, no ifs, no buts, and no recourse if I didn't do anything wrong.

Im all for measures which would let the police do their job more efficiently, I just keep thinking that this might get abused.

Thoughts?
 
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This is definitely progress, a road safety policy that is actually designed to tackle the people causing road safety issues... A revolutionary idea after the last 13 years of insanity.

It is worth remembering, that prior to the anti-speed industry, speeding was treated as discretionary enforcement by officers, speeding points actually meant something, and the number of people prosecuted for careless driving was some 6 times higher than it is currently...
 
Conscript said:
They should come down harder on people who don't keep left, then the problem of people undertaking would fix itself...
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I don’t disagree, lane hoggers are a pita, but it would still happen. You would still see idiots belting down the outside lane then weaving into the middle lane and back into the outside.
 
LOAM said:
Good, I hope they come down hard on undertaking on motorways tbh.
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People shouldn't be able (and wouldn't have any reason) to overtake on the left if others were using the lanes correctly. I hope the majority of fines go to middle/outer lane morons.
 
Good, two people pulled out on me today, first one was harmless due to a truck blocking their view.

Second one was a women not using her mirrors just cutting me up, horn blaring, so I pull on the underside and she refuses to look at me, acknowledge me or apologise, just keeps looking forward.

So on the fine spots yes please especially if it stops people from trying to take the front of your car off and not using their mirrors.
 
Given out by who, precisely? In case people hadn't remembered, police forces have all but withdrawn road patrols, with the marked patrol cars mostly being used for other work. I alsolike the veiled criticism of those cars, where it said that the police would be more likely to prosecute now: the no-so-subtle point being that they assume police were just letting everyone off.

I would guess that this will fail badly, with almost no-one accepting the police verdict at the roadside. Speeding is one thing, with the combination of good evidence and a highish price for failing at court compared to admission of guilt; but here the stakes are the same but the evidence is lower value.

Most importantly, does anyone know a bad driver who knows that they are? This will have no effect on accident rates because a) hardly anyone will get done, and b) the drivers who are caught won't believe that they did anything wrong.


And coming up next: HATO vehicles being allowed to hand out the penalties?


M
 
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Dogbreath said:
People shouldn't be able (and wouldn't have any reason) to overtake on the left if others were using the lanes correctly. I hope the majority of fines go to middle/outer lane morons.
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So you’ve never seen cars in the outside lane travelling at national speed limit or over and a car come steaming down behind them cutting into the middle lane and then back out to the outside?

Have you never been on a motorway in the UK ?
 
Meridian said:
Given out by who, precisely? In case people hadn't remembered, police forces have all but withdrawn road patrols, with the marked patrol cars mostly being used for other work. I alsolike the veiled criticism of those cars, where it said that the police would be more likely to prosecute now: the no-so-subtle point being that they assume police were just letting everyone off.

I would guess that this will fail badly, with almost no-one accepting the police verdict at the roadside. Speeding is one thing, with the combination of good evidence and a highish price for failing at court compared to admission of guilt; but here the stakes are the same but the evidence is lower value.

And coming up next: HATO vehicles being allowed to hand out the penalties?


M
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Shock horror, the policing approach that actually worked might have to be brought back????

Speeding used to be something that was done at the roadside without masses of additional kit too, and now we have video cars...

Should we continue with the failed road safety policy of the previous administration because it makes money as an alternative?
 
One point that seems to be missing from this master plan is that you'd actually have to have police officers on the roads to spot these heinous crimes in the first place and presumably they'd have to be on video to provide evidence. With so few coppers around these days, I don't see this policy as anything other than some publicity.

Presumably the police would issue a fixed penalty notice in the same way as a speeding offence, with to option to go to court to review the evidence?
 
LOAM said:
So you’ve never seen cars in the outside lane travelling at national speed limit or over and a car come steaming down behind them cutting into the middle lane and then back out to the outside?

Have you never been on a motorway in the UK ?
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Why are they sitting in the outside lane if there's room on their left?
 
LOAM said:
So you’ve never seen cars in the outside lane travelling at national speed limit or over and a car come steaming down behind them cutting into the middle lane and then back out to the outside?

Have you never been on a motorway in the UK ?
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Why are you in the fast lane if the middle lane is empty, thats the question?
 
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