The Dutch police – like so many sectors – has a staff shortage. The officers thought they would have enough colleagues again by 2025, but this expectation was canceled at the end of last year. By 2027, the police would still be short of 1,500 criminal catchers. The police in England also do not have enough employees, but they have come up with a solution: citizens are given a laser gun to flash speeders.
Citizens in the county of Staffordshire can volunteer for the police. It is an initiative of the Staffordshire Safer Roads Partnership (SSRP), which is keen to make roads safer in order to reduce the number of road deaths and injuries. The police recently handed out laser guns to residents so they could catch speeders.
“The volunteer teams use hand-held radar equipment at pre-identified locations to monitor vehicle speed and relay vehicle information to police when someone is speeding,” Michelle Shaker of SSRP told the local news website StokeOnTrentLive. The volunteer program apparently works fine.
No fines, but a letter for the speeders
The volunteers are not allowed to issue fines, but they are allowed to pass on the license plate number to the police. The officers then send a warning letter to the speeders. And then another one. If you drive too fast again within a year, 'the information will go to the appropriate police team who will plan a visit to the owner of the car and give this person a warning'. Shaker does not say what happens on a fourth violation.
Last year, more than two thousand speeders were caught by citizens with the laser gun. According to the secretary of the local residents' association, there is varying response to this. 'The group has had one person who was not very happy when he drove past. But believe it or not, there were a few who gave them a thumbs up and thanked them for what they did.”
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