Fleeing Wairarapa drivers on rise

FATAL: A 2010 example of bad choices, where a suspected drunk driver fled a police checkpoint in Blenheim, and later crashed into a car, killing the occupant.

The number of drivers fleeing police in Wairarapa is at a five-year high according to official figures, and it's likely to end badly, says Wairarapa's traffic sergeant.

Wairarapa drivers were caught fleeing police 145 times in the past five years, according to data released to the Wairarapa Times-Age under the Official Information Act.

It showed the number of drivers issued "fleeing driver notifications" hit a five-year high with 36 in the last financial year.

Masterton traffic policing Sergeant Chris Megaw said fleeing drivers put themselves and others in a very dangerous position.

"Not stopping is an offence on its own. Then there's probably a good chance that not stopping is married up with suspended driving or drink driving so unfortunately most people who are in that position have fled for a reason and then got themselves in more trouble.

"There's also the more serious possibility that they might crash and hurt themselves and others."

Fleeing drivers were motivated by several factors, he said. "The main motivation is to stop their car getting impounded so that would cover suspended and disqualified drivers.

"The second most common motivation would be drink drivers and then after that you're probably talking about hardcore people that are in stolen cars or have done other offences."

Several rules and regulations governed whether police engaged in pursuit, he said.

"The focus is on the safety of all those involved. When I did my training many years ago we were told 50 per cent of all police chases end in a car crash. "I'd say the reality is about 25 to 30 per cent ... I have that in the back of my mind when I engage in a pursuit or hear that staff are engaging in a pursuit; I know there's a high likelihood that it will end badly."

Nationally, more than 11,000 drivers were caught fleeing police in the past five years.

The amount of drivers caught each year fluctuated between 2195 in 2009 and 2393 last year.

New Zealand Police Association president Greg O'Connor said fleeing drivers were "a major dilemma".

"Those numbers only include drivers that were caught," he said. "There's a lot more drivers that have got away who will do it again because they think they can get away with it.

"It's an issue that police forces and governments around the world are grappling with."

Most incidents which ended in an accident happened within 30 or 40 seconds, he said. "The last thing you want is people driving stupidly and dangerously to get away from police and then have them going headfirst into a vehicle."

Mr O'Connor said there was no right answer.

"The question is do you have a no-pursuit policy or a very prescriptive one which actually makes roads less safe because you're incentivising drivers to get away from police? It's a matter of trying to get some kind of balance. Generally, I think we've got it pretty well right in New Zealand.

"In Queensland, where they've virtually got a no-pursuit policy, there was a death in the weekend and someone who broke their neck from fleeing police."

Some police association members were frustrated by attitudes towards being pulled over by police, he said. "There should be more of a focus on changing the behaviour of drivers than on changing the behaviour of police."

NZME.