Bob wrote:

GooberTheHat wrote:

And probably over the limit.

Way over... lol.

@cinty yes I reside on the Isle of Man

Drink driving in close proximity to children is fucking hilarious.

Well it was more hangover driving

You slaaaaaag!

Bob wrote:

the filth are everywhere.

Never there when you need them, though, eh, eh.

Dont you got nobody better to arrest

Bob wrote:

I appreciate it's a thankless job Andy but fuck me someone needs to prioritize

Someone is. People on mountain bikes on pavements kill fewer people than people in cars on phones.

Have you actually been booked for that?

Although I did once get booked for 'riding' a motorbike with no l plates that didn't run. I was pushing it and thought there'd be no harm in rolling down the hill. How silly I was.

It had an mot, tax and insurance ... it just wasn't running, I was pushing it to the garage to get them to repair it.

It wasn't. He did say he'd of let me off if I'd had one l plate. But my argument that it was a non-runner and as such I wasn't riding it fell on deaf ears.

Bob wrote:

Not people stopped at red lights I'd wager

Presumably it’s pulling away when the lights change after not having been paying full attention to what’s going on around you that runs the risk of killing people.

I’m not disputing that people have been booked with it, but wondered why that’s the thing you picked up on.

For what it’s worth, every uniformed cop I know turns a blind eye to several minor road traffic offences on pretty much every journey they go on. Why? Prioritising. If you see a divisional Police car go by, they’ve probably got a good twenty ongoing enquiries they’re trying to juggle (more if you’re in a city), as well as the however-many calls they’ll attend that day, some of which will add to their list of ongoing enquires. They don’t have the time to stop and dish out a ticket, because they’d never get to their own enquiries if they did that.

If you get stopped by a divisional unit, it’s probably the most serious infringement they’ve seen for a good week or six. They’ve still got things they’d rather do, so at that point, the attitude test kicks in. Most people pass the attitude test with flying colours. At that point, asking, “Have you got nothing better to do?” is an instant fail. For most divisional cops, who really didn’t want to give out a ticket, this makes a ticket a definite. They won’t enjoy it, they’re not doing it to meet a target, but the recipient has made the decision for everyone.

There are roads policing units (traffic cops). Their job is to make the roads safer. They would book their own granny. However, their guidance is clear; their tickets relate to offences which are not some dark secret. Everyone knows that you shouldn’t use your phone, even if you’re at a red light. We all know what speed limits are. We all know how to put on a seatbelt. I’m not a fan of traffic cops, but unfortunately they’re right: people who break these rules make the roads more dangerous. People who use their phone at a red light are more likely to use it or be distracted by it when the vehicle is in motion.

So, if someone gets booked, they were unlucky enough to be seen by one of a small number of traffic cops who will without hesitation apply a law that’s there for us all to read in black and white, or they acted like a dick to an overworked bobby.

For what it’s worth, the enthusiasm to book drink drivers (even those the morning after) is universal, given that they put all of our lives at risk through their selfishness.

If you think that we should give up on roads policing, write to your MP. Tell them that you think that the ratios of Police officers in different departments should be changed. Tell them that there should be fewer cops in departments, monitoring sex offenders or investigating organised crime, and more in uniform catching those pesky mountain bikers. Or, if you think there just aren’t enough Police in any department, and they’re all overworked (hint, it’s this one) then maybe make that clear to your MP.

Or maybe find a cop and call them filth to their face, if that’s how you feel about it. The cops on the street are definitely responsible for allocating resources.

Or maybe just shut the fuck up until you’ve got any sense of what the fuck you’re talking about, you fucking ignorant buffoon.

@andy tl:dr apart from the last paragraph. Community policing at its finest.

That is a top post Andy.

Like you say, people know the rules.
It baffles me that anyone would argue when caught bang to rights.

Same with parking tickets innit.
"I was only ten minutes late"