Making Our Roads Safer

[AB Editor]

 

This poll is closed.

What Changes Do You Think Could Be Made To Make Our Roads Safer?

• Tougher penalties for those who break the law. - 126 votes
• 56%
• Tougher driving tests (making for better drivers) - 64 votes
• 29%
• Lower speed limits - 19 votes
• 8%
• More traffic calming measures such as traffic lights and speed bumps - 15 votes
• 7%

See final stats

Stats until: 18:56 Sat 21st Dec 2024 (Refreshed every 5 minutes)

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[SpikeyBush]

Perhaps more effort needs to be put into stopping people crashing in the first place, rather than just getting them to crash slower. This is through education, better preparation for a realistic driving test and a tougher test.

I rather like doing 160mph when I'm in Germany on the derestricted autobahns and am glad my car isn't limited. I'd like to add that I have had police driver training for these speeds.

[Hopkirk]

No amount of training will stop some foolhardy people driving fast and recklessly- they can pass any test, but still driving stupidly next day.

[SpikeyBush]

So if you drive like a tool, never mind clocking up 12 points, lose your licence straight away. Why penalise those who drive responsibly? It would be like banning the sale of knives because some people get stabbed. So instead of carving your roast on a Sunday you have to wallop it with a bit of timber until lumps of meat drop off it.

[SpikeyBush]

Ah...just thought of a flaw there. To do this you need coppers out there on the beat and we don't have them any more. Only cameras issuing £60 fines to vicars doing 31mph.

[Electrochem]

I put tougher penalties when I voted. However, I think fines should be calculated on what a person earns. This is the case in some countries. We need to clamp down on the people who continue to drive whilst holding a mobile 'phone to their ear or sending and receiving text messages. My personal view is that there should be a minimum £250 and 6 points for such offences. Incorporate technology in roadside cameras to catch them!

[sigma]

The majority have voted for tougher penalties but no mention has been made of educating the offenders. Why were they driving dangerously or without due care and attention. Fine them by all means but educate them as well instead of just letting them back out on the road.

[MoonRocker]

I always find that these sort of questions tend to single out speed as the route of all evil when in reality most accidents are caused by a myriad of bad driving. Unsafe lane changing, tailgating, roundabout cutting, in swingers, emg stoppers, dawdlers, etc etc. To read the above you'd think that limiting cars to the speed limit would stop all accidents. when in reality it would stop very few.

[mikeashworth]

Replace all traffic lights by roundabouts or mini-roundabouts:
1. Traffic flows better
2. Safer because at roundabouts drivers do not "jump the lights"
3. Safer because if accidents do happen they tend to be glancing collisions not head-on
4. Traffic flow is regulated by intelligent decisions by drivers, not by dumb decisions by a programmed set of lights.

[m0xom]

clampdown on pedestrians who cause accidents. Jay walking, wandering into the road, crossing the road 50 meters away from zebra crossing etc...

[Old_Geezer]

None of the above. Roads are expected to be dangerous, one can not expect perfect safety in life. Be responsible and treat roads with respect. I believe ours in the UK are already some of the safeest around.

Best improvements you could make would be more cops to stop and discuss with those who appear to be driving recklessly. And finance to speed up the day when the norm is for your car to drive you safely to your destination without you having to control it.

[Old_Geezer]

Limiting speed has been discussed many times and is likely to cause problems since one can not, when the situation demands, temporarily go fast to get out of the fix that was allowed to develop.

[TWR]

When the test is passed young person should not have a car over 950 1000cc & speed limited & sealed like the HGVs until they have had 2 years exp then raise it if no bumps has been caused by them, if a bump has been caused resit the test, as said no passengers after a time given, if a repeat offender remove the licence for a timed period, speed limits! its not the speed that causes the accidents it's the person in charge of the car, with respect to the very elderly, eye tests, reaction tests, ability test, instant ban for a Month if caught using a Mobile whilst driving & increase if re-offended.

[Paul22118]

Time to retest the oldies.
First do the over 90's
Second do the over 80's
Third do the over 70's and keep retesting every three years.

It would become the norm for older drivers to be scrutinised and weed out the unfit ones. Include an opticians certification of sound eyesight for renewal and a doctors certification for renewal - this would ensnare the many who have lost the plot. A chap near me regularly calls his son to come and get him as he cannot remember how to get home from the town!

[Slogger]

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