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Powys publishes biker leaflet

Powys County Council has published its third leaflet for bikers in the region, which talks about the dangers of motorcycling in mid-Wales.

The leaflet, which incorporates a map, explains that 'Powys is known in the motorcycling world for having 'good roads with real bends' - but that some of the bends require extreme caution. 'Don't let enforcement be the only reason you slow down', the leaflet says.

The leaflet gives a number of tips to help riders avoid being involved in a collision, and advice should they be involved in one.

The leaflet concludes by asking the reader , 'will you be going home today...?'

For further information contact Alison Morris, alisonh@powys.gov.uk

DSA session - 'a must' for RSOs

A recent Driving Standards Agency (DSA) training day proved popular and useful for 40 members of IRSO Yorkshire & Humberside region.

The day - held at Goole on 24 May - comprised modules outlining the Arrive Alive programme in schools aimed at motorcyclists, young drivers and youth offenders. The presenters also gave an overview of Arrive Alive Classic for the more mature driver.

Tim Draper, Leeds' senior RSO, described the day as "a comprehensive presentation that is a 'must' for road safety professionals".

For further information about IRSO Yorkshire & Humberside training days contact Jo Ponsonby at jponsonby@wakefield.gov.uk.

For further information about the DSA's presentation contact Mary Archer, mary.archer@dsa.gsi.gov.uk.

Long serving RSO retires
Meg Lewis, senior RSO with Powys County Council, has left the authority after 23 years service.

When appointed, Meg was the first female senior RSO in Wales and only the second in the UK. Since then she was most noticeably part of the team that drove the campaign to make it compulsory for children to wear helmets for cycle training. She was also involved in developing the first Pass Plus programme in Wales.

Other achievements have included being appointed chair of the Road Safety Council of Wales.

At the final meeting of the highways and local service committee before her retirement, county councillors made a presentation in recognition of her service.

Countryside Agency tackles rural speeding
Using oak timber village entry signs, removing white lines and making cattle more visible are among the suggestions from the Countryside Agency to tame speeding traffic on rural roads (Surveyor, 1 June).

The agency has highlighted good practice examples for reducing speeds using measures sympathetic to the rural setting in areas including Buckinghamshire, the Chilterns and Gloucestershire.

For the full story go to: http://www.surveyormagazine.com.

Riders' safety scheme launch

The world's fastest biker is backing a campaign that will give Lancashire riders the chance to avoid prosecution for motoring offences by taking a special course.

Nick Sanders, the fastest man to travel around the world on a bike, has backed the groundbreaking Rider Intervention and Developing Experience (RiDE) course, a joint initiative between the county council's road safety group and the police.

From this month, bikers caught for offences including driving without due care and attention and non-compliance of traffic signals, will be offered the option of taking the two day course at a cost of £185.

For the full story go to: http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk

Catching the speeders other cameras can't
Lothian and Borders police force has launched its latest tool to catch those who break the limit on narrow or remote roads - a motorcycle equipped with a safety camera.

The Honda 650 Deauville will monitor narrow roads inaccessible to mobile camera vans. It will target speeding motorists on remote roads in the Borders and narrow roads in Edinburgh.

Colin McNeil, manager of the Lothian and Borders Safety Camera Partnership, said: "Vans are just too big to be used safely [at many sites] as they could cause an obstruction. The motorbike is an ideal solution."

For the full story go to: http://news.scotsman.com.

Kirklees police target shoppers
Kirklees North and South Road Traffic Police have been distributing leaflets to shoppers at supermarkets in Kirklees to raise awareness of the national summer drink drive campaign, which breaks this week.

Sergeant Dean Taylor said: "The idea behind targeting supermarkets is to encourage shoppers not to drink and drive. We're thinking particularly about people going to barbeques in the warmer weather and also those watching the World Cup.

For the full story go to: http://www.westyorkshire.police.uk.

Injuries 'predictable' on danger roads - AA
Deaths and serious injuries are 'routine and predictable' on some main roads, according to the AA (Surveyor 1 June).

The AA has named 10 inter-urban roads in northwest England, Yorkshire & Humber, the east Midlands and Scotland where 'there has been little or no change in the number of fatal and serious collisions' since the first EuroRap survey five years ago.

AA Motoring Trust director Bert Morris said that the fact that many of the routes had been at the top of the list since its work began begged the question: 'Are the responses of roads authorities to routine deaths and serious injuries proportional to the scale of the problem?'

For the full story go to: http://www.surveyormagazine.com.

Sussex cameras having positive effect
The number of crashes resulting in serious injury or death at fixed camera sites operated by the Sussex Safety Camera Partnership has reduced by 56% - and at mobile sites there has been a 69% drop.

According to figures in the partnership's annual report, the speed of traffic at camera sites has also dropped. In 30mph zones, 60.1% of vehicles exceeded the limit before installation of a camera - but this dropped to 15.1% in 2004/5.

Superintendent Paul Morrison of Sussex Police said: "In conjunction with other measures designed to tackle driver behaviour, safety cameras have had, and will continue to have, a significant role to play in casualty reduction. I welcome the secretary of state for transport's proposed future changes to integrate camera partnerships and their activities into the wider road safety delivery process."

For the full story go to: http://www.sussexexpress.co.uk.

Drink-drive councillor vows to stop others

Lancashire's youngest county councillor has spoken of his drink driving shame - and vowed to prevent others from making the same mistake.

22-year-old Sean Serridge, who was one and a half times over the limit when he was stopped by police, said he would start a campaign about the dangers of getting behind the wheel after drinking.

Councillor Serridge said: "I want to use what has been a really negative experience for me into a positive by raising awareness about the dangers and consequences of drink driving.

"I was nipping down to town to post some letters. I was devastated that I was over, if I had thought I was over I would never have driven. I had a few drinks early on but I felt alright. I held my hands up and accepted the charge and will be learning from it."

For the full story go to: http://www.lancashireeveningtelegraph.co.uk