Volunteers’ Week: Specials work to keep a city’s roads safe

Our Specials have been helping to keep the Southend district’s roads safe this week, working with Southend City Council staff and a Safer Essex Roads Partnership (SERP) safety officer.

Over the two nights, our Specials volunteered 51 hours towards keeping roads across the Southend district safe for all road-users. 

On Tuesday 6 June 2023, they focused on specific locations well-known because of the number of collisions and speeding complaints identified.

They also spent time educating motorists they stopped about the dangers of speeding, inadequate vehicle maintenance, poor driving and Vision Zero – our ambition to eliminate deaths and serious injuries on Essex roads by 2040.

During the operation, they reported 17 motorists for driving at excess speed, with 47mph in a 30mph zone being the highest speed recorded. One driver was reported for having illegal tints on their vehicle’s windows and requested to remove them.

The following evening, a moped rider was arrested on suspicion of committing immigration offences. He was initially stopped because he was suspected to have no insurance and no driving licence.

They also reported a motorist for not wearing a seatbelt, which is one of the Fatal Four offences - drug-driving, along with drink-driving, speeding and using a mobile phone while driving are the others.

Last year, 48 people were killed and 770 people were seriously injured in crashes on roads across the county and Fatal Four offences contributed significantly.

All our Specials are volunteers. They donate their spare time to helping their communities, keeping people safe and catching criminals.

 

Could you?

Specials have the same powers as regular officers and dedicate at least 16 hours a month to policing, alongside their other commitments.  

Does this sound like your next challenge? Find out more on our Specials webpages and apply today.