I write in relation to a case you may already be
looking at, concerning the death of a motorcyclist on the A338 in Dorset, when
it seems he panic braked and skidded, on spotting a Dorset Road Safe speed
enforcement van.
I am a road safety campaigner in Dorset and have for
a long time believed that the activities of Dorset Road Safe, previously Dorset
Safety Camera Partnership, have actually had only a negative impact of road
safety on balance. This concern seems justified as Dorset is one of the worst
councils in casualty reduction. Full information can be seen on my website
www.dorsetspeed.org.uk .
Throughout this campaign, which must have been running for over 5 years, I have
done my best to make everyone in all the Dorset authorities (and DfT) aware of
the issues and have even offered assistance if it would help. But these messages
have almost entirely been completely ignored by Dorset Road Safe, the Councils,
the police, police authority, etc. Where there have been responses, they have
been uninformed, unscientific, arrogant, complacent, and unprofessional. Again,
there are plenty of examples of this on my website. I even presented a complaint
to IPCC a year or so ago about one particular enforcement, which still has not
been resolved entirely satisfactorily, although it has been shut down now.
The important point is, that when DRS sent this van
to the A338 on that unfortunate morning, they would have known, if they had
listened, that this was not necessarily a good thing that they were doing.
Again, if they had listened, they would have been aware of some of the negative
effects that result from a dependence on speed cameras in place of proper road
policing. But DRS have only presented an optimistic view of the effect of their
operations, without taking into account the significant number of negative
effects or opportunities to do better.
I therefore believe that, if Dorset Road Safe, is
found to be even partly responsible, that their contribution to this death
cannot be considered entirely “accidental”. I believe there is some serious
incompetence, and negligence, on the part of Dorset Road Safe, and those
(councils, etc) who have continued to support it, despite the constant stream of
evidence I have provided that has suggested that it is more greed, than road
safety, that drives them.
I wanted to contribute these points to this case but
would be very pleased to answer any other questions you may have. I would be
most grateful if you could keep me informed of any progress on this case.
Regards, Ian Belchamber