MP meets Storrington Community Speedwatch

Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert met volunteers for Storrington’s Community Speedwatch initiative on Friday afternoon (6 November).

Storrington Community Speedwatch is a partnership between Sussex Police, the Parish Council, West Sussex County Council and a growing number of local volunteers.   On Friday, the group was recruiting new volunteers and answering questions from the community about local traffic.

The MP met the local volunteers at their stand in the High Street in Storrington, and heard how Community Speedwatch is working to improve safety on the roads around Storrington.

In a recent council survey a high proportion of Storrington residents said that traffic is a major concern.

Community Speedwatch volunteers are trained by Sussex Police to monitor the speed of passing traffic using laser or radar equipment at safety-assessed sites.  If a vehicle is travelling over the speed limit, the car details are logged and sent to the Sussex Police for action.

The volunteers believe that their local campaign is working well as a deterrent against speeding.  The Speedwatch team have reported as many as 200-250 speeding incidents in a week, but this number has been declining since monitoring began.

The Community Speedwatch initiative also gives the team the power to report other driving offences including the use of mobile phones while driving.  These incidents are reported to the Sussex Police’s ‘Operation Crackdown’ via the website.

The work of the Storrington Community Speedwatch complements the local operations of the Roads Policing Unit, who are also active in setting up speed checks in the area. 

New volunteers are welcomed, and all residents of Storrington and Sullington who are aged over 18 and have an email address can join the team.  Most volunteers support at least one session a week for one hour, but all assistance is welcomed.  Please email storrcsw@gmail.com for more information.

ENDS

Notes

   1.   Photograph – Nick Herbert MP with volunteers of Storrington Community Speedwatch. 

   2.   To contact Storrington Community Speedwatch, please liaise with Co-ordinator David Fellows storrcsw@gmail.com.