Do Traffic cops have nothing better to do?

[T.C.]

People often ask me if Traffic cops have nothing better to do than nick bikers for speed or smal number plates. Well, this may address some of those points.

In the last 12 months in my old force, traffic Police (sorry, Roads Policing officers) were intrumental in making 268 arrests across Buckinghamshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire.

Were involved in the recovery of stolen vehicles across the Force area worth over £230,000.

Removing 194 vehicles from the road for being driven either while uninsured or by an unlicensed driver.

Being involved in the recovery of over £3million worth of class A drugs.

In one stop-check alone recovered £2.5million worth of heroin and cocaine.

Whilst it does not tell the whole story, as they are also dealing all the fatal and serious injury crashes and enforcement, it does show some of the othr aspects of police work that my former colleagues are involved in.

And before anyone says that they should not be out nicking people for speeding or small plates or anything like that, I would add that if you chose to ignore the rules of the road or that speeding does not kill (and I accept that speed initsef is not the killer) or that it is impossible to ride or drive at 30MPH, all I can say is that whever stays that is talking total cr@p. You choose to ignore the laws, then you should be man enough to put your hands up and accept it when you get caught.

[BikerGran]

You choose to ignore the laws, then you should be man enough to put your hands up and accept it when you get caught.

Totally agree - I got done for exceeding the speed limit, if only by a very little - it cost me £100 I could ill afford and it was all mt own stupid fault!

[Obiwan Kenobi]

I am sure they do a fine job with limited resources and manpower....

So do you think they will ever invent a "safety camera" that can record dangerous driving as well as a human can see it, or will they just record excess speed over the limit, whether safe or not and oblivious to what time of day/weather it is etc to fill the coffers?

Oh and do you think anyone is really convinced that the fat blokes driving dayglo discoveries on the M1 marked up Traffic Officers are Police?

And I speed all the time, everyone I know speeds, but my speeding is not dangerous, and if I get a fine, which I have recently, I take it on the chin as a "fair cop!"

[Smilinjack]

Cor, sounds like a press release that does. I don't think anyone with more than a few brain cells thinks that traffic cops do anything other than a lot of good on the roads. But people do like a gripe when they're in Daily Mail mode-that's all it is. Sounds to me like you're defending something that hasn't actually been attacked.

[Dalemac]

T.C - I dare you to go on BCF and say the same thing and see what response you get

[D-Rider]

If only we knew how many doughnuts were consumed to achieve all of those successes, we might be able to determine the efficiency or something.



..... or at least contemplate in awe the number of doughnuts consumed .....

[squadron Nero]

I'm not sure I do agree. The law is the law but it doesn't make it right. I've been done for speeding on the M54 56mph in a temp 50 zone. Did the old speed awareness course for that. Just to note that was by a camera not a copper. But I mean 6mph over the limit on a motorway....

Anyway. What deos annoy me is that when my van got broken into it took the police an age to see to me and they never caught the thieving scum either. But they are quite happy to dish out fines because someone has tried to make their bike look cosmeticly better by fitting a slightly too small number plate. Well to me it just stinks of an easy target and good stats for the constabulary.

I know the line needs to be drawn somewhere but with all the bigger problems in this world maybe some of the smaller ones could be better dealt with.

[fatboy]

In over 30 years of riding I have only had one bad experience of Traffic Cops.
You cant deny that they have to deal with some horrendous fuck ups caused by stuidity/arrogance ect., so there is no way they can be super human and be super polite every time all the time after witnessing the shit they have to deal with.
Traffic have cut me some slack when they have stopped me and worked out 'yes I may be worth aa few points but we will let it go as you're not a complete asshole.
Not fair to compare traffic cops to beat cops.

[Firestarter]

If only we knew how many doughnuts were consumed to achieve all of those successes, we might be able to determine the efficiency or something.



..... or at least contemplate in awe the number of doughnuts consumed .....

We're you stalking the doughnut shop or the police for that pic Andy?

[TwinkietheKid]

Turn about is fair play?

[Aladinsaneuk]

the law is the law - break it, you get what you deserve

I have a lot of time for our police - actually all our emergency services

BUT

i have no time for target driven policing

once a senior officer tells his staff (or her staff tbh) that each officer has an arrest / conviction / fines target - then good policing has gone out of the window

to joe public, that then becomes a major issue as the public loses confidence in the police


way back in the mists of time, when i was young and stupid, we had local bobbies - and they knew their beat - i can remember getting a friendly tap on the shoulder advising me that if i carried on being a prat, i would be nicked.... reckon that was more effective than an on the spot fine...

I can understand TC's pride - but i think i can understand other people's cynicism as well

[lazarus]

the law is the law - break it, you get what you deserve

I have a lot of time for our police - actually all our emergency services

BUT

i have no time for target driven policing

You assume that if there were no targets to meet , people would still work just as hard. You are wrong. Many people are lazy and in jobs where the workforce cannot be seen doing their job, a proportion would do sod all without any incentives otherwise.

Never been down to your local supermarket and seen plod in there doing their shopping, patrol car outside.

[Aladinsaneuk]

Actually, no - never seen norfolk plod doing that

And yes, targets are necessary in work - they are in my job

Doesn't mean I will compromise care though - and that is, after all my job
(Guess that's called being professional)

And too be specific, police targets that are income led are bollocks

Soft targets to meet targets - arrests for littering for example are again bollocks

If we accept that police targets are necessary, then let those targets be police led, and not income / politician led

[flatlander]

I have a somewhat more emotive view and whilst in essence I agree with Alad and understand TC"s pride I just don't rate them... But a lot of the time I would prefer them to cameras.

I doubt for example that a major drug trafficker is caught that often due to a lucky on the spot check... And if they are then surely that would justify more police so that everyone can be followed just in case they do something wrong?

I have recently had a good experience with a traffic cop so appreciate his common sense and avoid speeding etc more carefully on his patch ... Sabes us both the embarrassment :)

That said it is my only I one in 50 years pus !

I preferred like Alad the local bobby giving me a thick ear than an on the spot fine and think it had more success in instilling the fear of getting caught. Nowadays the police seem to hibernate as soon as the weather gets bad and then swarm all over the place when its not.

In my experience they are too target driven but in a way where mi or offences can count the same as more serious ones and inefficient

So having said I don't rate them why well because they stick together like flies on sh1t and are about as useful. If I knew my neighbour was robbing other neighbours should I report them? If so why doesn't the same apply to the police?

One simple thing I would change is the name from a force to a service... And by the way other real emergency services don't seem to consider them on an equal footing maybe that's why they are not an emergency service and a force who knows?

[BikerGran]

They ARE now called the Police Service - a retrograde step in my opinion.