COUNCIL HELPS LOCAL COMUNITIES TACKLE THE DANGER OF SPEEDING MOTORISTS

12.50.00am BST (GMT +0100) Tue 21st Apr 2009

Stuart Bodsworth joined community volunteers training to use the speed watch equipment

Stuart Bodsworth met up with Stockport's community Speed Watch volunteers to find out how their training is going. Stockport's Lib Dem led council has launched a partnership initiative to help communities protect themselves from irresponsible motorists driving dangerously fast around our neighbourhoods.

The borough's first Speed Watch has been running since 20th April 2009 and was set up in partnership with Greater Manchester Police.

Local community volunteers are being fully trained to carry out Speed Watch Radar Checks to deter motorists from breaking the speed limit. The pilot will be operating in different locations around Bramhall and if a motorist is caught speeding residents will report the incident to the police, who will then issue a letter to warn them to reduce their speed.

Stuart Bodsworth said "This is a good example of a Stockport Council initiative plugging a gap in Government services. It would be much better if there more Police officers available for our area, then the police could do more to tackle speeding. But by working with the local communities and making the most of the Police resources available I hope that we can make our neighbourhoods safer and help to calm down excessive speed."

Cllr David White, Executive Member for Transportation, said: "Community Speed Watch encourages community involvement and sends a strong message out to speeding motorists that breaking the speed limit will no longer be tolerated.

"It's unfortunate that we have to take such drastic action to get motorists to adhere to the speed limit and we hope that this will act as a deterrent to anyone who is tempted to speed."

If you would like more information, contact the Council's Road Safety Team on 0845 833 4444 or visit www.stockport.gov.uk/roadsafety