Speeding P-Plater

One would consider a probationary driver exceeding the speed limit by 60 km/h to be rather foolish and unworthy of being entrusted with driving on the road for the safety of other road users with immediate effect. There was a report in the local rag back home recently of an 18 year old p-plater from Adelaide, some 270 km away, who was caught driving her father's BMW at 140 km/h in an 80 zone. Consequences of her actions were a $692 fine and disqualification from driving for six months. The police allowed her 24 hours to drive home before the driving ban came into effect though.

What were they thinking? At the rates of knots this young woman travelled at she only needed two hours before the car could be parked in the garage at home. Get her off the road. I dare say that daddy wouldn't have been too impressed either. But he's lucky that it was in South Australia and not Western Australia where we have hoon laws. That car would have been impounded by the police had the offence taken place over here.

I was relating the story to a colleague and he informed me that his daughter had been caught exceeding the speed limit by 25 km/h on Saturday and her car was impounded. He didn't think that speed was such a bad thing if the driver could handle the car at such speeds. To consider this thought think about a young man that he knows who has a CAMS (Confederation of Australian Motor Sport) licence which allows him to be a race driver. The guy is only 16 and has a learners licence and so isn't allowed to drive on public roads by himself but can run around a race track at over 150 km/h. Maybe there are some drivers who would be much less of a danger to others on the road as they have been taught to drive instead of taught to pass a driving test but I can't condone excessive speed when the roads are full of idiots who don't know how to handle vehicles properly.

Love the fact that the local paper brings to life the misdemeanours of ordinary people. It's not something you read about in the big smoke and it does make you think that perhaps the system is working. The consequences of criminal behaviour is punishment. I'd like to see this in the large daily newspaper here too.


Crime Report from Border Chronicle