Surrey Police and Crime Commissioner David Munro is asking residents to complete a national survey on the policing of the UK’s roads, as part of a review of road safety and law across England and Wales.
Results from the survey by the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners (APCC) will be collated to inform the national review being carried out by the Home Office and Department for Transport.
Complete the survey before 30 September
In recent months, the Office of the PCC received a number of complaints from members of the public that speeding and antisocial driving had increased following the easing of Covid-19 restrictions.
PCC David Munro said: “This survey is an opportunity for those who have raised recent concerns about the safety of our roads to have their say at a national level, whilst also informing my own priorities as your PCC in Surrey. Your feedback is really important in order to urge the greatest possible commitment by partners across nationally and locally to protect every person who uses our roads.
“Over the summer, I have been directly involved in supporting the hard work of the Roads Policing team across Surrey, and as such I await with interest the results of this survey to outline the ways that police forces and local authority partners can be further empowered to deliver the best service possible to residents.”
In August, the PCC allocated money from his Coronavirus Support Fund to help pay for increased capacity for the Surrey and Sussex Roads Policing Unit (RPU), that included a dedicated operation that carried out over 300 stops of vehicles in Mole Valley. The operation
resulted in 96 traffic offence reports, fixed penalty notices or prohibition orders issued, four vehicle seized and 186 words of advice given.
The PCC has further agreed funding to purchase a number of noise monitors which can detect whether vehicle noise is within the legal limit.
The survey follows a report earlier this month by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS), that urged police forces to place a greater emphasis on roads policing to address the increase in those killed and seriously injured in recent years. In 2018, there were 1,784 people killed and additional 25,511 seriously injured on Britain’s roads.
Although Surrey Police were not part of inspection, the Roads Policing Team jointly operated in partnership with Sussex Police have welcomed the recommendations identified, and are applying significant scrutiny to the report to consistently strive for excellence.
Results of a Department for Transport annual survey on national travel attitudes published in August showed a mixed response to a range of questions on road safety including on the use of a mobile phone when driving, consumption of alcohol, speeding and enforcement by police.