Road Safety Chairman Caught Speeding & Using Mobile Phone While Driving

Chairman of the Suffolk RoadSafe partnership, Graham Newman, who promotes road safety messages was caught speeding and driving while using a mobile phone. He said the "slip-ups" happened months apart and denied they made his position untenable, adding that he wanted people to "learn from his experience".

In an interview with Mark Murphy on BBC Radio Suffolk, the Suffolk county Councillor said he was cautioned after being seen by a police officer checking emails on his phone. "It comes down to us in the end to take responsibility for what we do behind the wheel of a car and I'm as guilty as anybody else," he told the presenter.He said that he was "cross with himself" and said: "I try not to do it now. I always make sure my mobile phone is switched off," he said. "I admit what I did was wrong. At any point, I know you shouldn't be using a mobile phone while driving." The incident happened in Star Lane, Ipswich.

Mr Newman went on to admit being caught driving at 37mph in a 30mph limit in Playford Road, Ipswich, for which he completed a speed awareness course.

The two incidents were his only blemishes in 47 years of driving, he said.

Mr Newman said he was caught using his mobile phone before he became portfolio holder for transport in May last year, while the speeding offense happened a short time after.

"I'm at least prepared to be honest and admit what happened, I think we all think that we can get away with this stuff, until something like this happens. It applies to speeding and driving inappropriately and I am looking to pass on my experience."

Shocking Irish Speeding Campaign Video - UPDATE

So further to my blog about the Shocking Irish Speeding Campaign Video and from some further reading around the internet it has come to my attention that the classroom of children that gets "taken out" by the speeding driver is in fact meant to be representative of the amount of children that have been killed in Northern Ireland since 2000 by speeding drivers, I found this on the campaigns website sharetheroadtozero

"Since 2000 speeding has killed a classroom of our children"

The website also has some other information that is of interest including:

If you kill or seriously injure someone due to driving too fast for the conditions – there is no excuse. It will be your responsibility and you will have to live with the shame for the rest of your life. You could also go to prison for up to 14 years

Excessive speed is the biggest single principal factor for road death in Northern Ireland, killing 391 people and seriously injuring 2,903 since 2000.
   
Every road death is one too many – SHARE THE ROAD TO ZERO.

 

Dangerous Driver in Edinborough

This image of a driver in a 52 plate Vauxhall Safira,

dangerously transporting a swing whilst speeding along the A720 Edinburgh City Bypass was taken on Thursday evening. The swing frame apparently loosely tied to just one side of the vehicle’s roof rack rail.


The image was posted by website Edinburgh’s Worst Drivers, which exposes dangerous motoring in and around the city. A spokesman for Edinburgh’s Worst Drivers said: “This driver clearly has no consideration for the safety of their self or others. The carnage could have been catastrophic had the frame detached from the vehicle.” They have sent the picture to Police Scotland.

Road safety campaigners said the frame could have been transformed into a deadly shower of metal spears had it become detached from the roof.

Other instances of dangerous driving on Edinburgh City Bypass in recent months include:

• A driver reading a book at the wheel while speeding along the busy dual carriageway.
• Lorry driver using his phone and smoking at the wheel on the road.