TALK THE TOLL DOWN: Cops welcome speed fine fall

By Cherie Donnellan
A REDUCTION in speeding fines across the region suggests police are finally “getting through to drivers”, according to a leading traffic cop.
Geelong Police Senior Sergeant Shane Coles said fines were down as much as 15.3 per cent in the past 12 months.
Speeding fines were down 9.3 per cent in Geelong, with police catching 6346 drivers exceeding the limit in the 2011/2012 financial year compared to 5897 in 2010/2011.
Surf Coast recorded a 15.3 per cent fall, with 4629 speeding offences in 2011/2012 compared to 5897 in 2010/2011.
Snr Sgt Coles believed a “number of factors” could be behind the reductions but messages about the dangers of speeding were probably “getting through to drivers”.
Police would continue their emphasis on road safety despite the apparent improvement, he said.
“Geelong and Surf Coast police are continuing a stringent enforcement program on speeding drivers.
“We actively coordinate road traffic enforcement strategies, particularly through educational programs like in 2010 to 2011 when we showed drivers the importance of slowing down in school zones.”
Latest Traffic Accident Commission research suggested drivers’ attitudes to speeding had improved.
TAC data found that the number of drivers claiming they “never speed” had doubled from seven to 15 per cent since 2001.
The percentage of drivers claiming to speed “all or most of the time” dropped from 23 to 12 cent.
TAC’s acting chief executive officer Clare Amies welcomed the findings but said “there’s always room for improvement.
“Speeding is illegal, it is dangerous and it is one of the biggest killers on our roads, so it makes no sense why anyone would think it’s okay to do it.”
“For every increase in speed of 5 km/h above a 60 km/h limit the crash-risk doubles,” she said.
TAC interviewing about 900 Victorian motorists to collate the survey data.