Martin Saarinen

What’s the best way to police our roads, now that officer numbers are down?

THE 30 per cent drop in road police levels in the past 10 years has led to questions on how the future of road policing in the UK will work.

Essex is one of the few counties exploring some leftfield alternatives to full-time officers. Previous schemes have included recruiting local driving instructors with dash cams to act as their “eyes and ears” on the road.

Maldon District Council in Essex has embarked on another scheme by arming its community protection officers (CPOS) with hi-tech cameras to catch speeding motorists. Under the Trucan Initiative, the CPOS will “offer additional enforcement and increase residents’ safety and confidence” by working with the county’s police to catch criminals.

This is the first partnership of its kind, where the CPOS will be given cameras to use at 54 sites around the district where police presence has fallen in recent years. The footage captured will be sent to Essex Police. Officers will determine whether a crime has happened, with the driver only informed afterwards with a fine.

On one hand, it’s a great way to help the police manage their growing workload, while hopefully also reducing incidents of speeding, but it’s also a slippery slope. Where will the authorities draw the line? Will paramedic duties be outsourced to members of the public who have had first-aid training, for example?

Ultimately, there’s no substitute for well trained, dedicated professionals. I’d rather drivers who speed be caught by a police officer, and have the dangers of their actions explained on the spot, than have them pay a fine weeks later with no lesson learnt.

“Community protection officers will get cameras to use where police presence has fallen”