Call for volunteers to help tackle speeding drivers in Shropshire

Community Speed Watch has been running for eight years in the West Mercia Police area and people are being reminded how to get involved if speeding traffic caused them concern.

Loft Longhurst, the CSW group coordinator in Cockshutt, near Ellesmere, said: "I had been coordinating a Speed Watch group in Sussex before moving to Cockshutt and knew the value of the scheme so was keen to promote the idea and establish the team.

"We currently have nine active members and we usually manage three one-hour sessions per week where we see between four and 10 vehicles exceeding the 30mph limit.

"Having said this, over our time of operation, we have seen a significant drop in both the number of drivers exceeding the speed limit and the speeds travelled."

Cockshutt Speed Watch was formed in 2019 with the cooperation of the parish council in an attempt to reduce the speed of cars through the village.

The scheme benefited last year from a younger volunteer who was doing his Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award to fulfil his voluntary work module.

Community Speed Watch is coordinated by West Mercia Police but managed and run by volunteers.

It involves trained volunteers from the community monitoring the speeds of vehicles with approved, hand-held speed measurement devices. Where vehicle speeds are found to be inappropriate, a letter is sent to the registered keeper by the police with the aim of encouraging them to reduce their speed when driving in the future.

The scheme was introduced within West Mercia in 2014 and now has more than 40 active sites operating.

It was introduced to enhance the force’s speed enforcement strategy, by addressing community concerns in areas that do not meet either speed or collision criteria for police-led enforcement.

Superintendent Gareth Morgan, of West Mercia Police, said: “Excessive or inappropriate speed continues to affect the quality of life for many communities across West Mercia. As part of our continued support towards the Local Policing Charter, we are enabling local communities to take an active role in addressing concerns about speeding traffic.

“The aim of the scheme is not to catch as many speeding drivers as possible, but to encourage them to drive within the speed limit. Feedback from active group members suggests that motorists visibly slow down when they see the volunteers by the roadside carrying out speed monitoring. In many local areas where Community Speed Watch is already in place, local residents have seen a positive change in driver behaviour and compliance with the speed limit and we look forward to replicating those results across more areas in the future.”

A Community Speed Watch scheme is initiated when ‘speeding traffic’ has been identified as a community road safety concern by a parish council or safer neighbourhood team. However, a number of criteria must be met before a scheme can be established:

• The area must have a 30mph or 40mph speed restriction.

• Speed data collected by West Mercia Police must show that speed levels in the area do not meet the national industry requirements for police enforcement.

• No other enforcement activity is currently in place.

• There must be at least six volunteers in each Community Speed Watch scheme.

• Speed checks must be conducted by at least three volunteers at any one time.

In areas where community concerns about speeding are raised, speed data will be collected by West Mercia Police to determine the nature of the problem and action will be taken accordingly. Any new Community Speed Watch schemes are evaluated periodically to ensure they are having a positive impact on vehicle speed, driver behaviour and community reassurance.

Police say to raise concerns about speeding traffic, people should contact their local parish council in the first instance.