Haven't I seen some of these police programs where they are fitted with hands free?
I know it's slightly different, but if every sales rep in the land has a hands free kit fitted for his mobile (well, most) couldn't every police car be fitted with one for their radio?
Chris
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Commented last week that this programme because of its format and content does little to enhance the public conception of Plod.
It hasn't improved.
Force can spend zonks on plod cars with warp factor 4 yet cannot afford to install a hands free/voice activated comms system to enable driver to keep both hands on wheel whilst doing a ton and 90 dgree turns. Yet they persist in showing what is to become illegal use of a phone by Joe Public.
Mr Proficiency Jed out again giving tickets like confetti and for the mobile phone user - did he really see it? - stopping a vehicle on the brow of a hill (HC infringed) causing obstruction.
And very interesting - PC H''ton who ran into the rear of a suspect vehicle, one minute he was filmed with Sergeant tapes on his epaulette, then next minute a PC. Was he disciplined for the bump and demoted?
One good thing came out. If you are in the Sheffield/Rotherham area driving and see a blue Volvo Estate on your tail bearing the VRM: YP 02 BKN then beware.
My opologies to Fullchat, MLC, Clarkey but this isn't Plod in a good light is it?
DVD
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Total agreement with you DVD. Jed really scoring with his pull on single carriagway - brow of hill - loads of traffic . I thought the driver of the Blue Q Volvo (reg well noted) looked more like a villian than a pc. Does the SY PD not have a dress code I wonder?
:-)
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Regrettably there are at least another two of the same model and colour: I saw all three and two other traffic cars parked up outside Cutlers Hall in Sheffield about 3 weeks ago....
One further point about hands-free: the roads in Sheffield are among the worst anywhere in the UK, and the Manor estate (which I can see glinting in the sunlight from my office window as I type) has some very bad surfaces. I wouldn't want to do 30 along there without risking my tracking etc, so doing 90 one handed is asking for it, in my opinion.
O
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Related subject - Police driving and "do as I say, not as I do".
I live near a police station and am regularly roused from my sleep by a procession of police cars caning it into the distance on the nearby main road at silly o'clock at night, all with their sirens blaring.
A classic example was Monday night. 11:45pm and 4 cars go past in quick succession, sirens wailing. The sirens remained on until they were out of audible range, a total of about 3 or 4 minutes. Now I know that the emergency services are meant to follow the same rules as the public regarding use of horns after 11.00pm. There is no way that these cars were all at busy junctions for the time I could hear them and the time of night meant that traffic was light.
The fire brigade, for all their faults, manage to keep off the sirens unless approaching traffic lights and known danger points.
A classic case of somebody punching the adrenaline button and not letting go, methinks.
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I agree.....I'm convinced that these guys get a "fix" each time they hit the button!
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Hmm.. Not sure about this one
Personally I think they should use the siren more if appropriate but I accept that permanently on could be annoying, especially to those living near police/fire/ambulance stations. Traffic might be light in the early hours so you don't need to use it as much, but other drivers know that as well so might not anticipate other vehicles on the road.
I was once approaching traffic lights on a 40 stretch that were green to me actually doing 40 (miraculously no traffic on this stretch of road as well) and was suddenly confronted by a fire engine coming against the lights on the cross roads. He had his blue lights on but they don't show round corners very well in daylight. Some hard braking (though not an emergency stop) solved the problem, but hearing a siren would have alerted me to the situation and made me slow down earlier.
As an aside I believe that the Aberdeen Ambulance crews are allowed full use of the siren if they deem it appropriate on the way to an incident, but if on the way to hospital the patient is conscious, they were asked not to use the siren because of the possibility of "winding up" the patient. If the patient was unconscious then this did not apply.
Going back to last weeks programme - the artic in lane 3/police car squeezing incident, would a burst of siren not have aided the situation?
Chris TD
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On the original point, the use of the handheld telephone seemed wildly inappropriate at any time, never mind at the speeds he was driving. Particularly in a program which had just featured someone being fined for using a mobile phone.
Also, it didn't seem that it was a car mounted camera and seemed like a cameraman was involved - a lot of heavy equipment flying around if so.
I thought it was curious that the commentator referred to the stopping on the brow of the hill, and the backed up traffic several times.
I am surprised that the Police hadn't kept editorial control, or at least retained the right to respond to parts of the programme.
M.
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With you on this one, Mark. Can't understand for the life of me why they're using mobiles/handheld sets instead of the headphone/mike set-up which is widely available and can be operated by steering wheel buttons if necessary.
Plods can be b***** brilliant on some occasions, live up to their name in depressing fashion in others.
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I was once approaching traffic lights on a 40 stretch that were green to me actually doing 40 (miraculously no traffic on this stretch of road as well) and was suddenly confronted by a fire engine coming against the lights on the cross roads. He had his blue lights on but they don't show round corners very well in daylight. Some hard braking (though not an emergency stop) solved the problem, but hearing a siren would have alerted me to the situation and made me slow down earlier.
Dorset Brigade's standing order is siren at approaches to roundabouts and traffic lights, with additional use of bullhorn in daylight, otherwise only use it when it is likely that your lumbering great red truck hasn't been seen or the motorist has done a startled rabbit and just stopped, blocking the road*.
(* Source: My better half's ex is a driver with Dorset Fire Brigade. He once described the buzz of driving on a shout as better than pink fluffy dice, which sadly in his case she had to agree with, which is why he is now an ex......)
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I started a seperate topic on this (I didn't notice this thread because the program was not Car Wars it was Traffic Cops!). I'd be interested in your views...
Watching 'Traffic Cops' last night and the eagle eyed officer spotted someone driving using their mobile phone. They were not driving badly, carelessly or erraticly but he pulled the man over and said that he was issuing him with a fixed penaltly fine of £30 but not giving him any points.
Soon, it will be an offence to use a handheld but at the moment it isn't unless you are driving without due care and attention etc. Given this, how could the officer issue this ticket? I would have told him to stick it! The bloke just accepted it because he probably thought it was an offence.
Am I missing something here? It looks like a case of the law enforcement of non-existent laws!
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I get the feeling that some people here are trying defend the use of mobile phones while driving. I didn't see the program but i think that if a police officer spots someone using a mobile even if they weren't driving dangerously at that particular time it is impossible to drive and have a phone conversation. I've seen many people pull out of junction yapping on their phone and take their other hand of the steering wheel to change gear?! How can this be safe. Most when talking on the phone get too engrossed in the conversation and don't notice whats happening around either driving far too slowly or too fast. How many times have we all seen people on phones not using indicators, or sticking in the middle lane the motorway doing about 55mph not realising everyone is shooting past them? Or people on phones while going negotiating roundabouts not using any indication whatsoever or in completely the wrong lane? I think perhaps the most worrying dangerous use of phones which seems to be increasing people actually texting while driving?!!!
Anyway as for the police using radios on the move i don't think that they should be alone on patrols one should definately operate the radio and the other drive! But i think that most the time when the police use a radio they simply shout their position in to person and put it down again i think thats the main difference between the police on radios and people on phones.
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Last night the driver, and only policeman in the car, was reaching with his left hand, to a point awkwardly far back on the centre console to pick up a telephone, he was then having to reach back and press a button (dunno what) before he could use the phone, and then had to replace it. At the times they were showing his speed he was doing 70/80 in a 30/40 limit.
Now, I'm not criticising the copper at all, but what a dumb level of equipment to give him and then expect him to do his job as safely as possible.
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A fair point and one I hadn't considered, YSD.
Taking this a stage further, the problem with 'phone use is that the driver's topic of conversation is unlikely to have anything to do with what they are actually physically doing at that point, so diverting their attention from driving. A police driver, on the other hand, is reporting his current actions in the same way that a driver being assessed for IAM might be required to provide a running commentary on their actions and observations, actually heightening their awareness of their surroundings.
The actual physical element of using a 'phone on the move is only half the problem. It's the distraction that's the biggest issue and one that won't be solved by the use of hands-free kits.
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Didn't see the programme as I was working nights. (I generally try and avoid them anyway). However if the guy issuing the tickets was 'HGV' man from the week before, I will agree he is a sad case.
In my Force, all our cars are fitted with hands free. We recently had a new style of radio introduced. Our personal redios were issued before the car sets were replaced. The old car sets no longer worked. Officers had no choice but to answer calls using personal radios. Result large number of Officers disciplined and fined £30. Just because you don't hear about it, doesn't mean it doesn't happen.
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Our personal radios were issued before the car sets were replaced. The old car sets no longer worked. Officers had no choice but to answer calls using personal radios. Result large number of Officers disciplined and fined £30.
Just out of interest, MLC, who actually nicks the officers for illegal use of 2way radios? Surely not his/her colleague in the same car? Or do they actually get pulled over by other police cars? What makes one officer more right than the other??
It always worries me when I pick up from our county police HQ sports & social club, invariably the journey is eating into my passengers' VDT, and they can't understand why I won't speed!
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YSD - agreed. The mobile phone argument could easily degenerate into a discussion about a whole variety of other habits - eating at the wheel, changing CDs, etc etc. Im sure all drivers do something that diverts their attention from time to time. I agree that mobiles shouldn't be allowed though. I admit to having picked up the phoner and said 'Im driving,ring you later' or whatever. This is where a full hands free kit is a good idea. It would be a good compromise between a total ban (it'd cause lots of work for the police - hey something other than speeding to focus omn!) and the lack of any restrictions.
As for the police on radios - the equipment should be better suited to the job. If mobile users can have a fully integrated system for relatively little cash then why can't the poliuce have similar systems? They must surely face situations all the time where they are patrolling alone yet need to use the radio.
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Missed first weeks and watched last nights effort with no sound (long story) but I'm afraid I too can't accept why hands free communication isn't available, bejaysus its not rocket science.
Head sets for force control to allow typing with both fingers yet out on the streets hand helds make it totally blooming impossible to provide a proper commentary to allow any degree of outside co-ordination.
Perhaps MLC's kit is why my council tax bill for West Mercia Police has gone up by 14.6%. But @ ~32p/day still worth every penny IMHO.
"And very interesting - PC H''ton who ran into the rear of a suspect vehicle, one minute he was filmed with Sergeant tapes on his epaulette, then next minute a PC."
Yes I spotted that DVD, however just put it down to TV progs all being done by mirrors and spliced together much later.
Also after the bump, did my eyes deceive me, but didn't PC H''ton then zap off straight ahead into the distance leaving the unmarked Volvo bod to make the collar with help from the chopper or ??
"this isn't Plod in a good light is it?"
apart from all aforementioned incl PC "Jed" (unfortunately that was the one bit of sound I got!) one thing I hate about these chase videos is the fixed straight ahead camera angle.
Find myself just sitting there cringing because of the inability to open up/change the field of vision at bends, junctions etc. Maybe a market for Mr Murdoch and the magic red button view select on the digital remote.
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