Police

A Tesla Model 3 driver keen to explore the performance of his electric car will instead be walking, hitching a ride or catching public transport after losing his licence for six months after being caught allegedly driving at 147km/h in a 60km/h residential area – almost two-and-half-times faster than the posted speed limit.

Here’s further proof speed cameras are more about revenue raising rather than saving lives. A fixed speed camera in Sydney’s CBD has stopped issuing fines – sending warning letters instead – after more than 36,000 drivers were snapped in three months, which was more than seven times the rate of the state’s next busiest speed camera.

Motorists in NSW are being urged to ‘dob in a driver’ under a new initiative from NSW Police and Crime Stoppers. The new campaign, dubbed ‘The Four Ds’ (drink, drug, dangerous and distracted driving), is asking motorists to be the eyes and ears of Crime Stoppers and the NSW Police over the holiday period and dob in drivers they believe to be driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs or using their mobile phones while behind the wheel.

Optometrists and road safety experts are divided over calls for roadside eyesight tests – and nationwide vision testing standards – as recent figures show drivers aged 65 and over represent 22 per cent of all Australian road fatalities. Under new proposals from some optometrists, however, any driver could be obliged to undergo random roadside eyesight tests given vision impairment can affect people of all ages.

Empty roads in Europe, the USA and Australia have seen a rise in the number of drivers caught travelling at excessively high speeds, according to police and highway patrol units. State police across Australia have reported recording speeds as high as 192km/h as motorists take advantage of reduced traffic amid coronavirus restrictions, while traffic authorities in the US and Europe say average speeds have more than doubled in some areas.