By DARRYL FERNANCE
The latest in electronic radar detector detection equipment was formerly presented
to the Goulburn police yesterday, increasing their ability to cut the level of speeding
and speed related crashes.
Goulburn Mayor Max Hadlow handed the Australian made Stalcar Radar Detector
Detector to local area commander, superintendent Gary Worboys at the Goulburn Civic Centre
yesterday morning where senior constable Pat Hall had set up a demonstration to show the
capability of the new equipment.
The detector has been in for a month and has detected many illegal radar detectors
in vehicles.
Senior Constable Pat Hall said the heavy vehicle transport industry had been
traditionally the main offenders, using radar detectors to reduce the risk of drivers
being caught speeding, however in the last month, car drivers caught using the detectors
outnumbered truck drivers.
"In NSW it is illegal to have one in a vehicle whether it is switched on or
not," he said.
"If people were caught with radar detectors in their vehicles |
they
faced a fine of $1,050 and if they refused to surrender the device they could be fined an
additional $1,050."
He classified people using radar detector detectors as generally deliberate
speedsters.
Senior constable Hall attributed the number of people caught with illegal detectors
to school holiday motorists and people attending speed related events like the Summer
NATS.
"In NSW it is
illegal to have one in a vehicle whether it is switched on or not," he said.
Senior constable
Hall demonstrated how the Stalcar radar detector detector could pick up signals from the
latest and most sophisticated radar detectors on he market.
This was not the case with the Canadian device, which used modified 1980's
technology that had not kept pace with the changes and modifications to |
the radar detectors
used mostly by truckers and commercial drivers.
He said while it was illegal to sell radar in NSW people were purchasing them
interstate and many of the offenders were also interstate people still buying them hoping
not to get caught or mistakenly believing the claims that their devise could not be
detected.
He said confiscating the device from motorists increased the likelihood of catching
intentional speedsters who were not only putting their lives at risk but the lives of
other motorists and passengers.
He said that in January no identified speed crashes had occurred in the Goulburn
area, compared with six in January 1999.
This figure was encouraging however the highway patrol had still detected a number
of motorists travelling at very high speeds.
Senior constable Hall said the Stalcar RDD was in use almost around the clock in
the highway patrol's work to reduce the number of speeding motorists.
The device was not unique to Goulburn and had proved very effective in other areas
of the state where it was being used. |
