NO EXCEPTIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 205, 29 August 1936, Page 12

NO EXCEPTIONS.

THE 30 M.P.H. LIMIT.

"INSPECTORS LIABLE."

FROBIJBM FOR OFFICERS,

Traffic inspectors are wondering how the 30 m.p.h. limit prescribed for all drivers in the Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 1930, will operate (says the "Dominion"). No exceptions are made, and on the face of it it would appear that if an inspector exceeds 30 m.p.h. in pursuit of a speeding motorist he himself commits an offence.

Among other things, section 3 states: " . . . notwithstanding anything to the contrary in any Act or in any regulation or by-law, no person shall drive any motor vehicle at a speed exceeding thirty mik;s an hour on any road, street or other place to which the public have access in any borough or town district or in any other locality that is declared by the Minister of Transport by notice published in the Gazette to be a closely populated locality for. the purposes of this section."

' "No exceptions are made for ambulances, fire brigades, or traffic inspectors, to that> if any of them exceeds the 30 m.p.h. limit the driver is guilty of an offence,- in spite of the fact that life may be saved by shortening the time of the journey," said a traffic official. "Admittedly neither the ambulance nor the fire brigade should imperil life and limb in a reckless dash through closelypopulated areas on a mere chance that a life is in danger, , but both vehicles? have unmistakable warning devices and a distinctive appearance, and it is only common courtcsy, if not the duty, of motorists to give way to them. s ' Irritating Position.' "For the traffic inspector the position is even more irritating. If lie is patrolling a road at 30 m.p.li: and a motorist passes him at an excessive speed lie is apparently prohibited from chasing the offender, and his only course is to try to take the registration number of the speeding car, which is not always easy, especially at night. All a traffic inspector can give the magistrate is an estimate of the offender's speed. That is bad enough, but what is going to happen if a car is speeding in the opposite direction? What's the use of having a law if you can't enforce it?"

Another point worrying the traffic officer was the possibility of a motorist laying an information against him. "Suppose there is a particularly flagrant case of speeding or dangerous driving and an inspector deems it wise to chase the offender in the interests of public safety," he said. "What's to prevent that man laying an information against me for breaking the 30 m.p.h. limit? I have broken .the law, too."

An official of the Transport Department, when questioned about the law, said there was no need for any exemptions. Although a fire brigade, for instance, appeared to be travelling fast it actually did not average much more than 30 m.p.h., and the same applied to the ambulance.

Traffic officers should not have to exceed 30 m.p.h.; if a car passed them at a greater speed than that, the inspector who was properly trained should be able to take its number and estimate, its speed. If necessary, he could warn the driver to stop by sounding his siren, l which would also cover the case of. a speeding car travelling in the opposite direction.