CHARGE OF SPEEDING.

Putaruru Press, Volume VIII, Issue 331, 27 March 1930, Page 7

CHARGE OF SPEEDING.

MORRINSVILLE CASE. County Prosecution Fails. A charge of driving a car at an excessive speed on the main road between Motumaoho and Morrinsville, brought against C. F. Sherley, of I Hamilton, in the Te Aroha Magis- - j trate’s Court recently, by the Piako j County' Council’s traffic inspector, 1 was dismissed by Mr. F. W. Pla'tts, ! S.M., on the grounds that the eviJ dence as to the speed of the car was )’ not reliable, and that a speed of 42 miles per hour at which it was alleged to have been travelling was not 1 dangerous to the public taking all the circumstances into consideration, j Defendant was represented by counsel, acting under instructions from the Auckland Automobile Associatiom I The county traffic inspector, L. C. Russell, said that on January 17 he I was proceeding between Morrinsville j and Motumaoho when he noticed defendant’s car travelling fast, and he turned and followed it. In the straight stretch to the Morrinsville Hotel witness was able to test Sherley’s speed. It was 42 riiiles an hour, i After a number of witnesses had I given evidence regarding the accuracy or otherwise of the speedometer

! on the inspector’s motor cycle, the Magistrate said the charge must he dismissed. Mr. Gilchrist: Will your Worship I give any ruling with regard- to fu- j ture cases? The Magistrate: Certainly not. . This means that it cannot be regarded as a test case. - DISCUSSION BY COUNCIL. When the magistrate’s decision was mentioned at Tuesday’s meeting of the Piako County Council, Cr. F. W. Walters said it was not right for the Auckland Automobile Association to take up the attitude it had :■ after accepting subscriptions from j ratepayers in the county. “ I will not take out another subscription, and I think every man in the county should refuse to be a member,” he declared with emphasis. Cr. H. Magill: I certainly endorse j every word Cr. Walters has said. It

appears as if the magistrate gives a perfect license to everyone to drive at 42 miles through a borough. The engineer, Mr. B. H. Horner, reminded councilors that the magistrate had refused to allow the case to be taken as a test ease, so that every other case would Have to be defended- on its merits. A great deal of good had been done by Mr. Russell, the county inspector. Cr. Walters: Yes, and a great deal has been done by the Automobile Association out of our money. He repeated that it was unjust for the association to use the subscriptions of country motorists to come down there and beat the county. The chairman (Mr. W. R. Lowry) said the whole thing was ridiculous. They had ha-1 magistrates’ decisions both ways. One had upheld the bylaws and another had said motorists

could travel at any rate as long as it was not dangerous to other people. Cr. W. McLean (Walton) said they could always secure convictions against motorists for travelling at excessive speeds past corners, but it was useless prosecuting them for speeding on straight main roads, as it was held they were not endanger--1 ing other people. Cr. W. C. Kennedy and Cr. Walt- ’ ers commented on the statement of the Minister of Public Works, Hon. E. A. Ransom, at a function in Morrinsville, that he dared not suggest raising the petrol tax as the automobile associations were well organised and were a power to he reckoned with. This was not a strong attitude for the Minister to take up. 1 ■

Cr. McLean' said the council was concerned" over the damage to its roads by fast motor traffic. Vehicles travelling over 35 miles an hour cut up the county roads. It was finally decided to write to other counties pointing out the attitude taken up hy the automobile association. WAITEMATA COUNTY’S SUPPORT. At a meeting of the Waitemata County Council on Friday the engineer mentioned the fact that the Auckland Automobile Association had defended motorists charged with travelling at 40 miles' an hour and over on- roads in the Piako county. The council ‘supported the Piako County Council’s contention that the damage done to the roads as the result of speeding should be considered, and decided to communicate with the Automobile Association, the Piako County Council and the Main Highways Board.