Town police had no say in 20mph plan for High Street
Monday, 23rd July 2012.
Local police were not consulted about the imposition of a 20mph speed limit in Haverhill High Street, despite assurances from Suffolk County Council they had been.
Haverhill's police chief, Insp Peter Ferrie, revealed this week no one had asked him or his officers about the move, put forward by county council engineers and approved last week by St Edmundsbury Borough Council's Haverhill Area Working Party.
At the working party's meeting, local councillors asked the county council engineer overseeing the proposals, Luke Barber, if the opinion of local police had been sought.
He assured them the view of Suffolk Constabulary had been obtained, and he assumed this meant local officers had been consulted.
But Insp Ferrie said this was not the case. He revealed over 40 motorists had been ticketed for illegal parking in the weeks since the issue was made a police priority at the Safer Neighbourhood Team meeting in June.
This had had absolutely no effect whatever, Insp Ferrie said. He still firmly believes the only solution is to close off the street with barriers, but the working party heard this was unachievable because of the level of objections.
Mr Barber had told the working party the police should be able to enforce the regulations in the street, and if people felt strongly about it they could force the police to take action via the safer neighbourhood team public meetings.
Insp Ferrie said there were more worthwhile things his officers should be doing.
"We'll do what the public ask us," he said. "I'm dead against High Street parking issues being adopted as a police priority, but when it is we will always do our best to enforce it."
On the 20mph zone, he said: "We've not been consulted about it. If what has been done in Exning Road, Newmarket, is anything to go by it's a nightmare."
Haverhill's police chief, Insp Peter Ferrie, revealed this week no one had asked him or his officers about the move, put forward by county council engineers and approved last week by St Edmundsbury Borough Council's Haverhill Area Working Party.
At the working party's meeting, local councillors asked the county council engineer overseeing the proposals, Luke Barber, if the opinion of local police had been sought.
He assured them the view of Suffolk Constabulary had been obtained, and he assumed this meant local officers had been consulted.
But Insp Ferrie said this was not the case. He revealed over 40 motorists had been ticketed for illegal parking in the weeks since the issue was made a police priority at the Safer Neighbourhood Team meeting in June.
This had had absolutely no effect whatever, Insp Ferrie said. He still firmly believes the only solution is to close off the street with barriers, but the working party heard this was unachievable because of the level of objections.
Mr Barber had told the working party the police should be able to enforce the regulations in the street, and if people felt strongly about it they could force the police to take action via the safer neighbourhood team public meetings.
Insp Ferrie said there were more worthwhile things his officers should be doing.
"We'll do what the public ask us," he said. "I'm dead against High Street parking issues being adopted as a police priority, but when it is we will always do our best to enforce it."
On the 20mph zone, he said: "We've not been consulted about it. If what has been done in Exning Road, Newmarket, is anything to go by it's a nightmare."
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