Volunteers including local councillors were active in Buxton Road, Chinley for the first country-wide coordinated day of action as part of the NPCC’s Operation Spotlight which focuses on tackling the 'fatal four' driving offences - speeding, driving under the influence of drink or drugs, not wearing a seatbelt and mobile phone use.

The area of Buxton Road between Delamere House and Alders Avenue (30mph speed limit) is a notorious spot for speeding, and true to form on the day one motorbike was clocked at 51mph and one car at 40mph.

Derbyshire Alert, a service of Derbyshire Constabulary, describes the Speedwatch activities which took place on the 11th July on their website (click here) as follows:

"Community Speedwatch (CSW) is a national initiative where proactive members of local communities join with the support and supervision of their local police to record details of speeding vehicles using approved detection devices.

Speeding might be an issue that you don’t consider serious, however it is one of the fatal four. The fatal four are the four offences which contribute to serious collisions. The other fatal four offences are drink or drug driving, using a mobile device whilst driving or not wearing a seat belt.

The fact is, speeding does kill. In 2022, 303 people died on UK roads because drivers were travelling above the speed limit. All of those people have family, friends and loved ones left behind due to drivers choosing to go above the limit.

The volunteers report drivers exceeding the speed limit to the police and they will be sent a letter explaining the potential risks and consequences of their behaviour.

Community Speedwatch (click here for more details of their philosophy on their website) is about education and policing supports the committed teams of volunteers who work together to improve the safety of our local roads. There are nearly 2,500 CSW schemes across the UK with over 17,000 volunteers.
Everyone should take responsibility for the safety of all road users, we must all play our part in reducing the numbers of people killed and seriously injured on our roads every year.
Our volunteers who run Community Speed Watch Groups give up their time because they care about their communities and want to help protect residents in their area. Derbyshire communities shouldn’t have their lives put at risk due to speeding motorists. Many of these volunteers have jobs and busy lives outside of their volunteering but feel passionate about keeping local families safe.

In addition, speeding is constantly an issue that communities in Derbyshire highlight as being a significant problem and one they wish to see action taken. That’s why our groups target those areas which have been reported by the community as high-risk roads.

Today, your local SNT will be out and about with speedwatch groups around your local area!

Policing isn’t just about tickets, it’s also about education and community involvement, and these speed sites encompass the two.

Our officers will step in and ticket drivers when necessary, but we want more than that. We want to really educate drivers on why speeding does matter, and why it is something we’ll continue to target to keep Derbyshire safe".