Vroooooooooooom!

[Gromit]

// Able to accelerate from 0-60 mph in under 2.5 seconds, the £38,000 vehicle will be used by traffic officers to deter speeding motorists and encourage motorcyclists to slow down. //

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/10875978/Worlds-fastest-police-car-unveiled.html

[emmie]

some sort of late April fools joke.

[mikey4444]

I agree...it either late for this years April 1st, or far too early for next years !

[mikey4444]

There isn't even room for the Officer's Thermos !

[murraymints]

Nahhhh !

[youngmafbog]

It's a gimmick.

Fast Police cars are a waste of time, they are not allowed to chase anyone dangerously and if the reason is to chase motorcyclists becasue there are too many deaths then I would suggest this would cause more deaths!

//Motorcyclists are currently 35 times more likely to be killed in a road collision. //

Lets educate drivers in their little boxes first as they kill most of them.

[ToraToraTora]

yep, bang on YMB, let's train up the SMSBs first.

[kvalidir]

You know what would help road safety massively? If young people were given ridiculously cheap insurance say £500 per year irrespective of where they live, driving experience etc, up to say a 1.0l car and it stays that way unless they have an at fault crash or get caught speeding when it would revert to the £3-£4 k it costs at the moment. You'd have to somehow factor in the theft issues for some area somehow, but people aren't stupid, if it saves them a lot of money they won't risk losing that, whereas speed awareness courses etc are just seen as something to laugh about.
The car is a stupid idea and a total waste of money :(

[Prudie]

Why would cheap insurance for young people make them drive more safely?

[DrFilth]

.
how fast do they want to go
..
this is from 2008
.
.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DRW-0W3PpSE

[jim360]

"
While the car, which weighs just 612kg, is capable of keeping up with many high power road bikes, there are no plans to use it in operational police duties."

I wish I had an Ariel Atom. Then again I can't drive so it would just be to look at. Oh well.

[kvalidir]

Because, if you read my post, if they get caught speeding or have an at fault accident it would go up to normal levels which can be £3,000 +. Car insurance is the #1 concern of most teenagers, and a popular topic of conversation, so if there was a way by careful driving they could keep it at an affordable level they would.

[jim360]

Surely that ignores the reason that insurance premiums are so high for youngsters though? In the first place, Insurance companies are there to make money, not to encourage young people to drive, and secondly new and young drivers are responsible for certainly a disproportionate number of accidents. To throw away the principle of Insurance premiums being related to risk is to destroy the industry.

[jno]

not necessarily, jim; there may for instance be a ban on life insurance companies asking people whether they've had HIV tests. The reason would be that there is greater public interest in having HIV dealt with than in having insurance companies regulate their risks more accurately. Likewise, there may be a public policy interest in having young people drive better that outweighs insurers' concerns. The insurance business isn't easily destroyed.

[Baldric]

///While the car, which weighs just 612kg, is capable of keeping up with many high power road bikes, there are no plans to use it in operational police duties///

So, why bother?

[kvalidir]

The discussion Jim was about road safety not protecting the insurance industry and no of course it wouldn't destroy the industry, that's patently absurd. Encouraging people to drive more carefully is something far more important than protecting an insurance company's profts. Insuance is compulsary, they aren't going bankrupt over this idea any time soon.

[jno]

I'd like to see the Google version

[Prudie]

Well I did read your post. Surely the number of accidents currently involving young drivers are those who are already insured at the very high premiums so that hurdle's been covered. Making premiums lower thus potentially increasing the number of young drivers can in turn only increase the statistics of accidents surely.

[jim360]

I don't see that more young drivers who are traditionally more dangerous on average improves Road Safety. I'd be inclined to keep Insurance Premiums as high as they are.

[kvalidir]

You are both naturally entitled to your opinions, but I still stand by mine, young people would not risk losing and 'easter egg' policy price, and it would curtail the huge amount of young completely uninsured drivers as well, thus making the roads far safer.