Police ‘assist’ with speed

Casey Traffic Management Unit Acting Sergeant Allen Inderwisch is supporting the trial which will see ‘speed assist devices’ installed in the vehicles of drivers with a record of speeding offences. 33121Picture: Bridget Brady

By Kelly Yates
CASEY traffic police are showing their support of a trial that will see “speed assist devices” installed in the vehicles of repeat offenders in an effort to curb speeding on the state’s roads.
Casey Traffic Management Unit (TMU) Acting Sergeant Allen Inderwisch said he could see the benefits of The Repeat Speeders Trial, where speed devices known as Intelligent Speed Assist (ISA) devices will use visual and audible cues to alert drivers that they are speeding.
Drivers with a record of speeding offences will be selected and asked to trial the ISA device in their vehicle on a voluntary basis.
Motorists with serious driving offences will not be included in the trial.
“The trial will be a great assistance in reducing the number and severity of collisions,” Act Sgt Inderwisch said.
“Those who have the device fitted will be forced to change their driving behaviour. My only concerns would centre around the correct fitting of the device and any potential distraction it may cause to drivers. We need to ensure that drivers concentrate on the task at hand without spending their whole time looking at the device.”
Act Sgt Inderwisch says at the Casey TMU, they have a philosophy of using the three “E’s” when it comes to road safety.
“Education, engineering and enforcement,” he said.
The ISA devices use advanced Speed Limit Mapping technology, funded by the TAC and developed by VicRoads, to identify and record speed limits across the Victorian road network.
A data logger, also affixed to the vehicles, will track changes in driving behaviour such as whether or not they slowed down when the device issued the alert.
The trial was launched last Wednesday by Roads and Ports Minister Tim Pallas.
The ISA devices are set to be installed in the vehicles of more than 60 speeding offenders for three months.
“While we recorded our lowest road toll last year, any life lost on our roads is too many and we are always looking for innovative ways to change behaviour on our roads,” Mr Pallas said.
As part of the trial, another group of repeat speeders will participate in an educational program about the dangers of speeding, with the results and effectiveness of each group set to be compared.
The Repeat Speeders Trial is expected to begin by the middle of this year.