"People aren't taking as much care on roads" says Speed Enforcement Officer
19 people died in crashes on Wiltshire roads in 2024
A Speed Enforcement Officer in Wiltshire says people appear to be taking less care on roads.
Debbie Hind has told us she's seen a marked change in how people conduct themselves when driving in Wiltshire and is calling for us all to think of others safety when behind the wheel.
Recently released Government figures show 19 people lost their lives in crashes on Wiltshire roads in 2024, down from 22 in 2023.
Debbie says it's not one specific group who aren't being careful on the road.
"It covers all demographics," she said. "There are people who think there's that idea of a boy racer where they just say it's just going to be young men who are driving really fast and it's not the case.
"It's the people who we do catch speeding cover every age group and every level of experience."
She adds that it's happening in all parts of the county.
"You can get people speeding through villages or you can get people speeding through towns. There are places where they do slow down and they're a lot more careful and there are places where I think people are very used to driving those roads and they just drive them the way that they always drive them," Debbie said.
She told us that people often ask her if more static speed cameras can be installed on specific roads, but said that's not necessarily the answer.
"The problem with fixed cameras, I think, is kind of universally acknowledged, is that people get used to them, so they'll slow down for where the camera is and they'll speed up the other side of it. With mobile units, which is what we are, then we can move around really quite easily to different areas and target different places," Debbie said.
She added that the mobile teams can be more flexible with their approach, meaning they can focus on high concern areas or try to visit as many locations as possible.
She had this message for drivers: "We actually don't want to catch people's speed, we just want you to do the speed limit or less."