Traffic control hours to increase

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 12, Issue 560, 1 November 1994, Page 5

Traffic control hours to increase

At their monthly meeting last Friday Ruapehu District councillors were presented with the proposed 1 995/96 Safety (Administration) Programme (SAV) by Council's chief engineer Bruce Dobson and by Inspector Alex Campbell, Officer Commanding Traffic, Wanganui District. Among the recommendations made in the project summary were several involving increases in police staffing hours. These included: □ Speed control: an increase from 1400 hours

(1994/95) to 2900 hours. □ Drinking or drugged driver control: an increase from 1500 hours (1994/95) to 2550 hours. □ Road safety patrol: an increase ofrom 2050 hours (1994/95) to 2550 hours. □ Peak traffic flow supervision: an increase 110 hours (1994/95) to 210 hours. Other estimates remain at their 1994/95 levels such as: Bicycle helmet control (20 hours); School road safety education (210); Community liaison (50); Community needs safety campaign (50);

Promotion of restraint devices (230); Attendances at car crashes (510); Incidents, emergencies, disasters (70); Events and escorts (40). In addition to policing hours the SAV programme also proposes: the expenditure of $5000 on a 'Winter/Summer Speed Campaign for the Central Plateau' ; a further expenditure of $5000 on 'Early Childhood Education' ; a Secondary Schools driving skills competition in association with a car club ($3000) and a billboard campaign encouraging rest breaks in the Ruapehu region ($5000).

Councillors expressed concem that these additional police hours might be at the expense of existing policing duties and efficiencies if police were to be asked to work longer hours. Inspector Campbell assured councillors that the proposed upgrading of the Ohakune Police Station to Senior Sergeant category and with the proposed speed camera, general duty officers will have more time to react to criminal activity while traffic safety officers will be more pro-active in promoting road safety.