The launch of a pilot scheme that aims to bring down cases of speeding has been praised. Ashley Barnard reports

SPEEDING in North Yorkshire has been the single biggest issue for Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan to contend with since she took on the role in late 2012.

She says as well as accident and speeding black-spots known to police, frustrated residents of many other areas have serious concerns about speeding but have not qualified for increased traffic measures.

At the launch of the Community Speed Watch on Monday (March 2) – a six-month pilot programme across Hambleton, York, Harrogate and Selby – Mrs Mulligan, Deputy Chief Constable Tim Madgwick, and Chief Inspector John Wilkinson met volunteers in Topcliffe, near Thirsk, prepared to help boost safety.

The scheme will see police volunteers and members of the community being armed with a hand-held radar gun or an LED speed sign to record speeds.

Anyone speeding will receive a letter from North Yorkshire Police advising them to change their behaviour.

However, Deputy Chief Constable Tim Madgwick said it would be by a reasonably-worded letter and not direct enforcement.

He adds: “We want to educate people about speed limits and how an extra five or eight miles per hour can make the difference between life and death.

“I think it’s a reasonable letter – it is not about enforcement but about community safety.

“If a driver speeds through the area a second time they will receive a more robustly-worded letter, and repeat offenders can be fined – we don’t want this to be entirely toothless.”

He adds that the pilot fills the gap in the need to monitor less serious areas that the mobile safety camera would not often cover, so police have a full range of tools to tackle the problem.

Mrs Mulligan says: “People have been saying to me since I was elected - and even during my election campaign - that speeding was a big issue for them and something more had to be done.

“I’m delighted to see this pilot launched. Last year there were around 70 accidents as a result of speeding in 30 and 40mph zones alone – this scheme is a significant development in preventing accidents.

“People have also told me they feel frustrated and let down if they are told their concerns about speeding in their villages are insufficiently serious to warrant action.”

Last year she commissioned a road safety survey which showed four out of five residents were concerned about road safety in North Yorkshire, and that 72 per cent of people felt more should be done to improve road safety through enforcement or education.

She adds: “The scheme has been employed elsewhere around the country and we have looked at that and taken note of what works and what doesn’t, and have developed our pilot scheme from there.

“It’s all about making people stick to the speed limit and be more aware of the speed they are doing.”

Gordon Hatton, Topcliffe resident, said at certain times of day speeding was a real problem in the village.

He says: “I live on the main road and you can feel cars charging through the village, especially early in the morning.

“When I come into the village I drive slowly to slow people down behind me – speeding is a common problem across Hambleton, and I would certainly think about getting involved in this scheme.”

Topcliffe councillor Lynn Wallis says she believes there would be many residents willing to support the pilot.

“Anything that tackles speeding through the village is good – I’m very interested in finding out more about the scheme.”

Chief Inspector Wilkinson has been leading on the project since it began to take shape in October.

He says he is certain it will be a success and hopes it will continue after the six-month pilot period, as well as being rolled out across the county.

He says: “It is exciting to see the pilot launched. The aim is to make drivers aware of how fast they are going – most do not consider themselves to be speeders so I hope that a polite letter from the Community Speed Watch will make people think.”

The scheme has had support from the 95 Alive partnership with local councils, emergency services and other agencies, which works to reduce the number of road casualties in the county.

To find out more or to get involved with Community Speed Watch, contact the team at CommunitySpeedWatch@northyorkshire.pnn.police.uk or http://www.northyorkshire-pcc.gov.uk/.