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Government to invite bids to new road safety fund
Government advice on how to make a bid to the new £110m road safety fund, which is expected to be allocated as revenue rather than capital, is expected in the next few weeks (Surveyor, 19 January).
Much of the new money - announced in December as part of a package to replace the safety camera netting-off scheme - will go towards supporting cameras currently being operated by safety camera partnerships.
Local authorities are also expecting support for road safety education and publicity spending.
Campaign will highlight SCP role
To highlight the valuable work carried out by Buckinghamshire's school crossing patrollers (SCPs), the county's road safety team will launch a Stop Means Stop campaign at the end of February.
The campaign is intended to remind drivers that they have a legal duty to stop when they are shown the 'lollypop' sign by a patroller wishing to get people across the road.
The team also hopes the campaign will encourage more people to consider becoming to apply for SCP vacancies.
For further information contact Georgina Longley, glongley@buckscc.gov.uk
Surrey County Council is seeking a new host for the website it has created (in partnership with TRL) about vehicle activated signs (VAS).
The site, www.vasuk.info, is described as a 'one stop shop for everything about vehicle activated signs'.
"We have started the search for a new host to take on, promote, develop and expand the site for its road safety audience," explains Surrey RSO Ann Mortlock.
"The new host will probably be an organisation with a real enthusiasm for road safety, but that is able to retain the independence of the site. It might be that vasuk.info is incorporated within another site, or hosted externally as it is now."
For further information, or to express interest, contact Ann Mortlock on 020 8541 8604, or ann.mortlock@surreycc.gov.uk.
Speed limit database all mapped out
Proposals for a national database mapping every local speed limit across England are being considered by the DfT (Surveyor, 19 January).
The plan would allow speed limits to be displayed on in-car navigation and other devices. In time, the system could interact with speed limiters to cap vehicle speeds according to the limit.
"Having information in-vehicle is the way the technology is going," said Brian Goodwin, chair of the County Surveyors' Society working group on traffic and safety.
Cumbrians support tougher penalties
The people of Cumbria support stricter punishment for drivers who kill people in road crashes, according to a survey carried out by Cumbria Safety Cameras.
84% of those questioned supported a ban from driving of between five to 10 years, depending on the severity of the accident.
63% felt that a lifelong driving ban was appropriate for motorists who caused death. The same percentage supported a mandatory jail sentence.
Kevin Tea, spokesman for Cumbria Safety Cameras, said: "People in Cumbria are slowly becoming aware that the punishment for killing someone in a road traffic accident doesn't fit the crime.
35% of respondents also felt that parents should have responsibility for the driving behaviour of their children who were still living at home.
For the full story go to: http://www.newsandstar.co.uk
Cycle lanes installed as part of a national road safety demonstration project are to be removed only four months after their introduction, because cyclists have branded them unsafe (Surveyor, 19 January).
Hertfordshire County Council introduced the 0.8m lanes on the narrow carriageway of St Peter's Street in St Albans - in between a bus lane and the area for general motorised traffic.
The council felt that the cycle lanes, which are below the 1m minimum recommended by the DfT, would be sufficient in a 20mph zone.
Chairman of the St Albans Cycle Campaign, Liz Rutherford, said the lanes 'were so narrow they were barely able to fit the width of a set of handlebars in them. The council tried to help us, but it was a disaster'.
Conference will examine 'human factors'
PACTS and The Ergonomics Society are jointly presenting the Transportation Human Factors conference at the British Academy in London on 23 February.
The event will set out to share lessons, research and experience across transport modes - with input from road, rail, air and marine safety. The programme will include speakers from NATS, the RSSB, HSE, and the Metropolitan Police.
For more details or to book, contact Sue Hull of the Ergonomics Society 01509 234904, s.hull@ergonomics.org.uk or go to www.ergonomics.org.uk.
Apology over 'speeding' tractor
A farmer from Wiltshire has received an apology after he was accused of doing 85mph on his tractor in south Wales.
Steve Crossman was sent a ticket after a speed camera on the A465 near Neath allegedly snapped him. But the tractor has a top speed of only 26mph and has never been to Wales.
Mid and South Wales Safety Camera Partnership said it had misread a number plate and has apologised.
The first 49-year-old Mr Crossman knew of his tractor's alleged antics was when a letter arrived at home near Warminster.
He said: "The letter was a speeding ticket. We couldn't work out why because we hadn't been to Wales for about five years, then we noticed the number plate was that of my tractor.
"It's a good tractor, but not that good. It can just about get up to 26mph, but that's downhill, with a following wind and with no trailer on the back. There's no way it could get close to 85mph."
He rang up to let the Mid and South Wales Safety Camera Partnership know his John Deere 6910 tractor had never been over the Severn Bridge into Wales.
"The lady that I spoke to found it quite amusing and said they would investigate it. A couple of days later they phoned through and said they had misread the number plate."
It turned out the letters 'FOT' had been mistaken for 'FDT'.
"They've estimated it would take me five hours to get to wherever the event was," he said, adding that he had heard that Neath was nice. "I wouldn't have a clue where it was. I've heard of the rugby team but that's about all."
Phil Davies, manager of the Mid and South Wales Safety Camera Partnership, said: "We are looking into why our checking system failed to spot the mistake. We have apologised to the tractor owner and appreciate that he has seen the funny side."
The actual speeding driver will escape prosecution because it is too late to send him a ticket.
For the full story go to: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_west/4626952.stm
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