SPEED TRAPPING

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 151, 30 June 1928, Page 18

SPEED TRAPPING

StUESTiqfl IOF UNIFORMS t' FINES VERSUS rSA;FETY ;The South Taranaki Automobile Association has decided to. urgo local ■ authorities to provido all.traffic authorities throughout Taranaki with uniforms. There, is apparently some -differen'ro of opiiioa,among local bodies as to; whether visueH' officers' ■. should -:bo eJ.;*rly distinguished, or should, to uso I%'jdß which really fill the bill, bo more or less camouflaged. The- regulatibns - lay it down that every traffic inspector shall wear, while on duty, sqme distinctive uniform, badge, or csjp. This would seem to imply that camouflage is against the spirit of the regulations. ('Unwittingly, the Mayor of Lower Hutt has placed .the position clearly when, objecting to: officers-in that borough wearing vinifprms 'when operatiiig speed trap's^' he Si^id.i; that -motorists would pull upr~ The uniform is potent. TJ^Le whole aim of tho motor regulations is safety, and if a uniform will cause a spe.edster to come to a reasonable pace "then so much to the public advantage. The speed trap is no doubt an:. excellent "things for catching ; offenders, and'is a."necessary evil, but; it?shouM be stressed that the permitting of excessive speed to enable, a motorist to. be trapped is not in the inte'tests of public safety. There is plenty of'room in a MO yards, and even more in':an 880 yards trap,.for an accident to;';take place, and should an accident take place it becomes 'a serious question how far'a traffic inspector would himself be morally responsible for having allowed the speeding motor to dash past him into such a trap. -The Mayor of Lower Hutt is, indeed, on very insecure ground. He apparently.'considers the catching of a speedster'more important than the prevention of his speeding. This is strango in Mr. Strand, whoi as a rule, is nothing but commonsense. ■ '•, ■.■:•' ■ '. The presence of a traffic inspector on the Hutt road' has had a .-great--effect dn f keeping motorists within the law. This inspector is always in uniform, and to his credit be it said that the stepping of speeding and not the mere catching of the speedster has unquestionably been his aim. A His whistle acts as; an immediate- check.' Where sternw measures are required ho has shown himself well able to cope with the situation, but the main factor in safety is.his presence., Lower Hutt might well giye v serious consideration to this aspect of the subjectj;' rA>an on the road1 is •worth many traps. ■' ': -''■■■-■' '• Moreover, the Bench on several occasions lately in different parts of the Dominion, has not.shown itself greatly impressed by the trap as an efficient indicator of speed. sln a Court of law a "comp^ill?l"* mu3'; Prove a ease> if ithcre is any doubt the defendant gets the benefit. The trap is only of use to catch 'motorists who are , exceeding tho speed'limit to a slight extent. Where is flagrant the itrap is unnecessary; a conviction could be; obtained without recourse to so cumbersome a method.. The trap must be' accurate. ; A uniform ought to be worn by every inspector while on duty for the simple reason that when he approaches or beckons a motorist for any reason tho niotorist should be under no misapprehension from the very first as to- the man's status. It would be grossly unfair to leave an inspector open to abuse from a motorist who was .so interfered with, and grossly unfair to the motoris^ who might find himself in an awk-i' ward legal predicament. It is quite ■ certain that'even the best of inspectors! would prove but human, and any, chance of .a Caution would bo entire-; 1y lost. 'The'sp/ecd trap can be opcrat-" crl'quite efficiently liy uniformed men. They need only keep, put of sight,,and that should, bo > simple'" enough in "'tho Hutt Valley. • „/^ ;■ .. - .: ■ , ■ :■• -