Drivers who flout basic driving rules by speeding, using mobile phones or not wearing a seatbelt are to be targeted next week by Police Scotland.
The week-long campaign, which runs from Monday (February 11th 2019) to the following Sunday (17th) will be run by the Road Policing Division, with support from safety camera units, which will deploy mobile camera units across the country.
The campaign coincides with the publication of an observational survey by Transport Scotland and the Department for Transport comparing seat belt and mobile phone use in 2017 to that recorded in 2014.
This shows an overall increase of mobile phone use by drivers, up from 1.6% in 2014 to 2% at moving (free-flowing) sites and from 1.7% in 2014 to 2.5% at stationary (traffic light controlled junction) sites.
The observers also saw an increased wearing of seatbelts, up from 96.4% to 97.3% by all drivers although the rate for car rear seat passengers declined from 99% to 98.4%.
Officers will be looking out for speeding motorists, as this is a contributory factor in many serious and fatal road traffic collisions.
They will also be looking out for drivers using mobile devices, as statistics show that doing so makes the driver four times more likely to crash, and slows their reaction times by half, compared to normal drivers.
A particular emphasis will be on those drivers and passengers not wearing a seatbelt. Chief Inspector Darren Faulds, of Police Scotland’s Road Policing Division, said: “It is estimated that one in three people killed in vehicles were not wearing a seat belt, and half of those could have been saved if they had worn one, which is why we take this matter so seriously.
“Last Autumn we ran a similar campaign where we detected 36 drivers not wearing a seatbelt. Such detections were disappointing considering the compulsory wearing of seatbelts came into force many years ago, so officers will undertake enforcement activity and road side education with a view to influencing driver behaviour and casualty reduction.”
“Police Scotland is committed to making our country’s roads safer by achieving the Scottish Government’s 2020 casualty reduction targets, and works collaboratively with partners to reduce road casualties.
“We will interact with drivers through education to influence their behaviour, but where appropriate, we will enforce these core road traffic offences with the appropriate penalties, so my message to all drivers is quite clear #dontriskit”
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