Wet?

I am.

And there is currently a hosepipe ban across most of the country (I assume this isn’t the right type of rain!)

Anyway, been a very busy month for me with Special Escort Group training in preperation for the upcoming Olympic games and juggling general Police duties on top.

Take care on the roads out there as this torrential rainfall is opening up some nasty potholes and you may find the puddle you’re about to ride through a bit deeper than you realised…

I’ve been noticing a worrying trend amongst a minority of non engined two wheel transport users (i.e cycles) recently, so much so that i’ve gone above and beyond the ‘educating’ route to straight forward enforcement.

Whilst held stationary at a set of lights in Windsor and leaving enough room at the STOP line to accomodate the cycle area at the front I was dismayed to watch a man cycle at quite some speed straight through the red light and turn left at a very busy junction, I have no doubt with the limited view on offer if a vehicle had been coming from his right they would have had a coming together and I shudder at the outcome.

After a swift word about the legalities of a traffic light controlled junction he was advised about the possible consequences of doing this again.

The next night, passed a cyclist on the A4 in Slough and as I stopped for the red light the cyclist rode straight on through causing another vehicle to stop to allow him passage.

On stopping the cyclist and having pointed out the error of his ways his reply? “I’m on a bike , it doesn’t mean I have to stop just cars”

A £30 fine five minutes later I can assure you he will remember to stop in future.

Cyclists DO have to adhere to red traffic lights and are fooling themselves if they think different, just like motorcyclists they are a vulnerable road user and have enough ‘enemies’ and dangers out in the world of the road without making themselves a target and putting themselves on ‘offer’ so readily.

Along with my team from Taplow (C shift) we decided to target a known part of the A4 in Slough which was a known ‘blackspot’ and recognised casualty site, one of the main complaints and causes was our old friend, speed.

We decided to spend three shifts at the A4 junction with Ledgers Road which is a 30mph speed limit.

Sadly, the following proves why we have to conduct speed enforcement checks.

In those three days we stopped nearly 70 motorists for speeding, the highest being 67mph.

This section of road is clearly a 30mph speed limit, the presence of street lamps, the numerous large 30mph speed limits AND the Council have gone to the bother of putting up signs saying 30mph and ‘Lamposts mean 30mph’ as well, yet still drivers and riders are ignoring it.

One particular driver I stopped was doing 42mph and when I asked him what he thought the speed limit was he said ’50′.

I then explained the various signs that explained the speed limit to which he replied “I know the highway code, I read it last night and those signs are wrong, there are two lanes here which means I can do 50mph’

I continued ” Which part of the Highway code states a two laned road is subject to 50mph?’

The gentleman replied “Speed limits on two laned roads’

I finally said, “Ok, seeing as you are very confident of this I have no option but to report you for the offence’

‘What does that mean?’ replied the gentleman.

‘It means we go to Court, I explain what I saw you do and why I reported you and you explain what you did and why you did it to a Magistrate and then the Magistrate makes his mind up’

The gentleman replied ‘Um, I think my copy of the Highway Code may be somewhat out of date and you might be right about it being 30mph, can I have a ticket instead?’

After further discussion I offered him a speed awareness course for which he seemed immensely plaesed about, so much so that on leaving he said to me “Sorry for mucking you about but you gotta try haven’t you!’

Anyway, I’ll sign off for now…

Keep it safe out there and for those with any direct queries please feel free to Email at

derek.ingram@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk

Check out the main site as well for ‘BIKESAFE’ which is hotting up now, reserve your place!

Keep it on the black stuff and sunny side up,

Del

Hello Gang!!

Big apologies for the distinct lack in Blogging , however due to the various work being put into some sporting event coming up and a Jubilee, not to mention a move into our new base at Taplow things have been a bit hectic to say the least! However normal service is resumed.

So, it looks like a nice bit of warm weather is upon us (albeit easter has already put the mockers on it with temp dropping back down to single figures)

With the warm weather comes the emergence of hibernated bikes…those that will start anyway. If you had the unpleasant findings of a flat battery then whizz over to the garage, Steptoe has been playing around with some trickle chargers -good reading.

As I type this it seems the country is in the grip of a ‘panic buying’ culture with fuel due to an impending possible tanker driver strike.’Possible’ is the key word, it is worring watching cars stacked up on queues on major fast roads waiting for fuel, which in honesty they don’t need yet. Causing backlogs on quick roads can become dangerous, have a reality check first…do you really need fuel? Are you buying it in case there is a strike?  Have a think.

Now then, I was rather bemused at one young budding biker on his twist and go ped the other day, I stopped him as he had no ‘L’ plate and on asking him if he had a licence that permitted him not to display L plates he replied ‘I’m on a CBT Officer’. I asked where the L plate was to which he proudly pointed to the large L plate on the back of his helmet.

Clever I thought, but not legal.”It needs to be fitted to the bike not your bonce!’ I advised him and after a bit of mutual understanding on the joys of two wheels I left him with some Safer Rider goodies and the directions to Halfords…

These warm days have made the mornings very misty and still my colleagues and I are dealing with early morning collisions whereby drivers are not using thier lights SWITCH ON!!

Importantly for the wiser drivers out there that use thier lights AND thier foglights, don’t forget to switch the foglights OFF when visibilty returns or the next time you use the lights. Foglights in normal visibility at night cause dazzle to oncoming riders and drivers so remember to SWITCH OFF!

A quick reminder on number plates thanks to Paul W from Reading who asked for a bit of clarification on single line number plates on bikes -these are basically ‘car style’ number plates on bikes, often fitted as less bulky looking and deemed to be be overall better looking but completely illegal on a motorcycle. If you have one fitted you can expect a stop by a TVP officer, they stand out by a mile and are not hard to spot. Don’t risk a £60 fine for the sake of your bike looking a bit better!

TVP are now proud to be part of the National Bikesafe scheme and are running workshops all over summer to help our riders out in TVP areas please do NOT hesitate to contact us if interested, details can be found under the ‘Training’ tag on our home page go and have a look!

Ok, I’ll sign off for now and I wish you all a great Easter and hope you don’t eat so many Easter eggs that you struggle getting into those leathers…

Del

The advice follows an increase in theft of these vehicles in March 2011 and in the first two weeks of March this year.

In March last year 21 two-wheel vehicles were stolen in Milton Keynes, compared with just 15 in January and February. The majority were taken from gardens and drive ways. Four have been stolen in the last two weeks.

Det Insp Mark Glover, from Milton Keynes CID said: “Perhaps it is due to longer evenings and better weather, but for one reason or another, there tends to be an increase in theft of motorcycles at this time of year.

“People may think they are leaving their motorbikes or mopeds secure, but unless they are securely chained and stored behind a well secured, padlocked gate, they will attract criminals.

“Ideally, they should be kept out of sight in a locked garage, but if this isn’t possible, I would strongly advise investing in a strong padlock for your garden gate.

“The key thing is to make it as difficult as possible for criminals to steal them. Very often we find the vehicle has been taken for a short distance and then dumped, and often ruined.”

Check out Safer Rider review of a ground anchor system here and a BikeTrac system here

7th June 2012 (school half term) – Thatcham Football Club

For more information go to the RideStart page here

Milton Keynes Advanced Motorists in conjunction with Thames Valley Police ‘Roads Policing’ Department will be running a ‘Better Riding Course’ during March. The course will commence on Thursday 1^st March. There will be 5 weekly evening sessions held from 7.30pm to 9.30pm at Milton Keynes Police Station. There are also two opportunities to get out on your bike; on Saturday 17^th March there is a ‘machine control day’ held locally and on Saturday 24^th March there is an opportunity to attend Milton Keynes Police Station where the course will be based and be accompanied by a serving Police Officer for an assessment ride.

MKAM who are affiliated to the Institute of Advanced Motorists have been running similar courses at Milton Keynes since 1991.

The course is 5 ‘classroom’ based sessions (no test – not too formal!!) and is aimed at promoting safer and defensive riding techniques as taught by the Police and other emergency services to enable the rider to have a greater confidence in their riding and also importantly make it become more safer and enjoyable. Rod Hardie, a retired Police Officer who served for many years as a Traffic Police Motorcyclist and currently Chief Observer with MKAM, together with serving Police officers and observers from MKAM will help present this course. Together they bring a wealth of experience and good advice to these evenings.  ‘Roadcraft’ and the current ‘Highway Code’ together with slides and video will be used in the various presentations to demonstrate these principles allowing ample time for discussion and views.

If interested please telephone MK 686176 or e-mail rod@mkam.co.uk .

Busy! Busy! Busy!

There has been a distinct lack of activity in this section and for that I apologise!

The roads Policing department at Taplow has undergone some significant changes with the main one being the complete return to our ‘Home’ at Taplow.

The new base is up and running and I have to say it’s looking good!

We now , as a RP dept, no longer work out of Gerrards Cross and we are firmly planted on the A4 between Maidenhead and Slough.

As a result we have had quite a bit of upheaval but happy to say it’s all systems go!

Sad to see the great James Toseland forced into early retirement, the racing world loses another great rider but I wish him all the best in the future.

Taplow riders haven’t let the weather get the better of them and the team have been out and about getting in the faces of local criminals who like to use our roads to assist thier crimes, with some good success.

Well done to Steptoe and and another ‘Rat’ on collaring a couple of car thieves who soon realised that once the RTP latches on to you …give up.

It’s getting colder now so keep yourselves wrapped up and keep an eye on the road surfaces…it’s frosting over these mornings, leaves on the road can be deadly and you need to keep one step ahead.

Will have more for you next month so for now, keep it safe.

Del

derek.ingram@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk

Thurday 27th October at Thatcham Football Club

Check out the full details here: RideStart

Reccomend any of your gear that you have found to be invaluable for your bike and you could win an Oxford Boss Alarm Lock and a Safer Rider goodie bag with earplugs, buff, puc-stand, lanyard, and sponge!

Simply go on to the forum section called ‘Recommend me’ and tell us all about it. You can even sign in to the Safer Rider Forum using Facebook or twitter accounts.

National Event flyer 2011.pdf

If you ride a motorbike or scooter this is the show for you!

• Manufacturers/dealer bikes
• Motorcycle clubs
• Motorcycle stunt riders and displays
• Try before you buy scooter arena
• Observed rides available – conditions apply
• Motorcycle clothing and accessories
• Refreshments

In association with Heritage Motor Centre, Sands Photography, The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, The Motor Cycle Industry Association and Institute of Advanced Motorists, Highways Traffic Management.”

Not a great deal to report on this month -have been involved in a few ‘Safer Rider’ ride assessments notably the brave ladies from www.curvyriders.co.uk who endured what can only be described as ‘monsoon’ conditions at the ‘H Cafe’! Nut needless to say they endured the weather and did very well, it’s a great site and has members all over the UK. If you want, go and have a look but it is ‘ladies only’!

Had a rather interesting ‘Foxeye’ CBR Fireblade pass me on the motorway, and I was intriqued by the ‘white line’ down the centre of the tyre. Pulled him over as I thought it maybe something stuck to the tyre and it turned out to be the canvass on the tyre making an appearance! It is unbelieveable that people will run the risk of a blow out by failing to look after important (and legal) aspects of the bike, apart from the 3 points it can incur you are playing with your health or worse, your life.

Anyway, I’m a firm believer of education over enforcement so he got a VDRS getting him to change the tyre within 14 days. He was told by me to head for the nearest dealer to change it then (we should do a one day VDRS I reckon!)

Preparing for the annual pilgrimage to northern France next month so looking forward to a nice break on two wheels, thoroughly recommend it and the roads we use, any of you thinking of a trip there please feel free to contact me for the routes we used -they’re great! (I sounded like a cereal tiger there)

Stopped a couple of young lads on some nice bikes (CBR125 & YZF125) basically baby Blades and R1, but I was saddened to see one of the lads with a very ill-fitting helmet. It was a new AGV with a really nice design, so nice that he had to have it even though it wasn’t in his size. I was shocked further to hear that Dad purchased it KNOWING it didn’t fit properly. Rule of thumb is a full face helmet should cover your chin, and movement inside should be minimal and your cheeks should feel slightly compressed (this ‘gives’ after a while, new helmets are always tight to start with) this helmet was waaaaay too big for this lad and would offer little protection in the event of an ‘off’.

Anyway, I initially stopped them for popping wheelies (well, I say wheelies -more like front wheel ‘burps’) and made it clear that what they deemed as ‘fun’ can actually attract a fine and points, ranging from ‘not being in a position to have proper control’ to ‘careless riding’. Points and fines and not a good place to be. Now I’ve been challenged before about wheelies and how they deem the ‘not being in a position to have proper control’ as actually being in complete and ‘skilled’ control, however, you also lose the ability to steer and you have also reduced your braking system by 50%…(the front brake doesn’t work very well in the air).

Anyway, we had a good chat and after being given some ‘Safer Rider’ goodies and a couple of tips on cornering they were off – I wish them a long and rewarding two wheel future!

Take it easy out there you lot,

Del

derek.ingram@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk