Speeding drivers zapped

TWENTY-SIX cars were caught speeding in an hour through Christmas Common.

A group of volunteers gathered outside the Fox & Hounds pub on Friday last week where they used a hand-held speed radar gun to monitor drivers.

The group measured the speed of 117 cars and will be reporting those vehicles who broke the 20mph speed limit to Thames Valley Police.

The initiative, which was supported by Watlington Parish Council, was carried out as part of the national Speedwatch Day.

Councillor Andy Aherne said: “One of the most common concerns and complaints raised to us by residents is to do with the volume and speed of traffic, the poor behaviour of drivers and their lack of regard for residents.

“Speeding is one of the few areas where I think we have an opportunity to resolve things relatively quickly through an initiative like Speedwatch.

“The feedback that we’ve had from Thames Valley Police is that Speedwatch is extremely effective.”

The volunteers cannot issue speeding tickets but they share the registration plates of speeding cars with the police, which may write to or visit drivers.

Mr Aherne said: “We’ve also had really positive feedback from parents of young children trying to get to school.

“Mums with pushchairs trying to get across busy roads have said ‘Thank goodness someone is doing something about this’.”

The volunteers, who asked not to be named due to fear of reprisals, said the lack of pavements in the village makes getting round safely difficult.

One said: “When you walk around the village, you just have to dive out of the way when a car comes.”

The pool of 20 volunteers meet weekly in Watlington and Christmas Common to monitor traffic, in varying numbers, times and locations. The latest meeting was the group’s eighth and it says that speeds recorded in the area’s 20mph zones could sometimes reach between 60mph and 80mph.

The volunteers sometimes receive verbal abuse when recording speeds and criticism on social media.

One driver that passed by on the latest meeting shouted: “It should be 40!” at the group through the window.

Another volunteer said: “It’s all about education.”

Meanwhile, an increase in vehicles caught breaking the 20mph speed limit in Watlington Road, Benson, is concerning the parish council.

It says only one per cent of drivers drove at 30mph or below in June, while nearly a third exceeded 40mph.