Flying Squads To Operate Against Dangerous Drivers

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27533, 15 December 1954, Page 10

Flying Squads To Operate Against Dangerous Drivers

a • (New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, December 14. I Transport Department flying squads i will operate against dangerous and 1 drunken drivers on New Zealand roads ' during the holiday period. Each squad < —there will be nine of them—will 1 consist of flv? traffic officers in cars i and on motor-cycles. They will travel i widely over the countryside in an < effort to reduce the toll of deaths and injuries caused by bad and drunken < driving. J The Minister of Transport (Mr W. 1 S. Goosman) said today that the squads would comb each area, work- ’ ing as a team, and on areas where there was considerable traffic. “There will be six squads in the J North Island, and three in the South i Island,’’ said Mr Goosman. “By using : flying squads we hope to make some ( impression on the figures for deaths and injuries, and here I should like to make an appeal to all road-users to be extremely careful. Let us not have another holiday season marred by a heavy toll of deaths. Drinftdng and Driving "I would like to add a special warning about drinking and driving,’’ said Mr Goosman. “Liquor is responsible for a great part of our road accident toll, and the flying squads will hit down hard on the drunken driver. I appeal to all motorists to leave their cars behind and take a taxi, even if they have had only a few drinks.” More than 50 extra uniformed traffic officers would be on the roads during the holidays to assist in the “blitz on the drinking driver,” said the Minister. “The major part of reducing tbe death-rate is, however, up to the motorist and motor-cyclist,” Mr Goosman concluded. “By care, good driving, and abstaining from drink they can do much to stop New Zealand roads from becoming the scene of holiday carnage.” A survey of coroners’ reports shows that liquor is involved in one road death in three in New Zealand, but on Saturdays the proportion climbs to six in 10.

Last month there were 74 convictions in cases where liquor was involved, 23 of the offenders were im-

prisoned, and all were disqualified from driving. Of these 74 convictions, 16 were in Auckland, two were in Wellington, eight were in Christchurch, and six were in Dunedin. Of the. 73 convictions on similar charges in October, 13 were in Auckland, four were in Wellington, 12 were in Christchurch, and four were in Dunedin. Twenty-eight of the drivers convicted last month were charged under the new section of the Transport Act whereby a person may be prosecuted for being intoxicated in charge of a vehicle, while not actually driving it. Roads Board’s Part The chairman of the National Roads Board (Mr F. M. H. Hanson) said today that a longer and much more thorough course of instruction than was given at present should be insisted on before any applicant was granted a driving licence. He said that such courses would take a lot of organisation, and it might be neces- ; sary, to help to finance them, to put up the licence fee, but they would pay dividehds in making the roads safer. Mr Hanson said that ignorance of safe rules for driving in their broadest aspect, momentary inattention of drivers, discourtesy, carelessness, speeding. J and the effects of alcohol were all i factors in causing accidents, and these, >in association with the increasing l number of vehicles'on the roads, were ■ responsible for the current carnage. ’ Mr Hanson said it would never be possible to bring all toads to such a : condition that they could be classified I as “perfectly safe.” In any case, the i accident record of a stretch of road in - many cases bore no relation to the number or severity of the hazards on 5 it. Many hazardous lengths of road ’ had fewest accidents. He said that short-term measures to - make the roads safer over the coming r holidays could consist only of an ini tensified safety publicity campaign and - enforcement by traffic officers to the greatest degree possible of the rules s for good driving. 1 Mr Hanson said he had been in i touch with all district commissioners c of works, and had asked them to make sure that the necessary maintenance - tasks, such as painting of white lines - at the proper places on roads, were - completed before the holidays.