Thursday 25 November 2010

The Metropolitan Police Response; Roadsafe London

I have received a letter responding to my complaint back in September that I was not getting any joy from using Roadsafe London.  I was sent a copy of a letter addressed to me and dated 5th October which never arrived.  It is a little unfortunate that my e mail chasers which postdated that letter got no response as it might have become apparent that this letter was 'lost in the post' before I had to write to the Metropolitan Police Commissioner again in early November.
Leaving that miscommunication aside, the response is quite encouraging.  Apparently the reports I made on Roadsafe London were not ignored.  The clips I posted on youtube were viewed and a letter was sent to the registered keepers of the vehicles concerned with a link to youtube and a request to "drive carefully, keep yourselves and others safe and avoid the risk of being prosecuted".  None of this is apparent though to the reporter of the incident who gets only an (apparently) automatically generated e mail response and hears nothing more.  This may not compensate for the marked reluctance to prosecute on the part of the police and CPS but to give credit where it is due this is better than nothing.  If I had known such letters were being sent out to registered keepers I would have reported some of the more dangerous close passes from lorries.  Now that I do know I will resume using the site in appropriate circumstances.
None of this relates to the difficulty I have had in getting the threat to kill pursued and my next task is to pen a letter to the CPS.
I will keep you posted.

5 comments:

  1. This is good stuff - road users need to know what works and what doesn't.

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  2. Good to hear, unfortunatley GMP don't appear to have a similar initiative :-(

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  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  4. Always obey emergency road closing signs and barriers and follow the directions of any police officer. This is is basically for your safety. Remember, it is against the law to drive on a closed highway.

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  5. I missed Glydel's comment. However, I have often been ordered off my bicycle by a police officer and told to walk (usually when something ceremonial is going on). I have always meekly complied though it would be a lot easier all round, and certainly for my safety and the longevity of my cleats, if I were permitted to ride at walking pace. Not many officers seem to understand cleats.

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