Sent to Wolverhampton "Express & Star" Sept 97

				16-9-97


	Dear Sir,

		The Government's latest "Kill Your Speed" campaign, reported in tonight's Express & Star, whilst laudable in its aims is being too simplistic in its message. What do they mean by "kill" your speed? Stop altogether?

	Lately there has been an obsession with speed to the exclusion of everything else, but just slowing everyone down won't address the basic cause of road accidents, which is bad driving. Superintendent Lovegrove of the traffic police may well be right when he says that one out of every three road deaths are caused by a driver going too fast, but does he mean "caused by" or just "involves"? By "too fast" does he just mean exceeding the arbitrary speed limit, and if so by how much? And if one third of deaths are "caused by" drivers over the speed limit, what causes the other two thirds? Can we assume from these figures that twice as many accidents are caused by drivers within the speed limit as are caused by drivers exceeding it?

	The key comes at the end of the quote from Supt. Lovegrove, when he says that these accidents are caused by drivers travelling too fast "for the conditions AT THE TIME". Conditions change all the time and there's more to safe driving than just sticking at or below speed limits. So often I'm behind drivers who no doubt think that they're very safe because they're driving below the limit, who then continue at the same speed when conditions change and pull away from me because I've slowed right down in response to the new conditions. The message should be to THINK about your speed, indeed think about your driving generally. Campaigns such as this don't solve the basic problem, and promote a feeling of invincibility among those drivers who stick rigidly to the speed limit whether it's safe or not.

	RoadPeace say the Government should do more to curb speeding motorists. What's their definition of "speeding"? Doing more than 30mph anywhere? I've attended accidents during my police service and as a vehicle recovery driver, and I've also seen and helped at accidents during my time as a lorry driver, so I'm well aware of what happens in road accidents, and I'm all in favour of preventing them. To do so we have to treat the disease of bad driving by improving driver standards, not just try to treat the symptoms of "speeding".
>pa
	This campaign will doubtless be used as an excuse for another rash of speed cameras to be erected, and is probably also intended to help "soften us up" for the introduction of speed limiters on cars. Our would-be masters in Brussels passed the legislation earlier this year, and they intend to limit cars to 62mph. If, as the government would have us believe, "Speed Kills", this should reduce the accident figures, but since they slowed down lorries and coaches by fitting speed limiters the number of lorry drivers killed has gone up by 24% and the number of coach drivers killed has shot up by 67%. Speed kills?
		Yours Faithfully,







			C. A. Lamb.