KEY POINTS:
I can empathise with your correspondent Geoff Nieuwelaar whose recently acquired traffic ticket for a harmless enough speeding offence clearly had nothing to do with road safety and everything to do with revenue gathering. Some months ago, I had a similar experience.
I'm a retired male who has been driving for about 50 years. My offence (71k in a 60k zone) occurred on a well formed sealed road on a fine sunny day with dry road conditions and no other traffic about except me and (unfortunately) a cop.
I got suckered by one of those downhill situations so beloved of the revenue raisers, where it's easy to inadvertently pick up a few clicks too many when rolling on down the slope.
Like Mr Nieuwelaar, I acquired an $80 fine and 20 demerits and to save your other recent correspondent Alan Tomlinson having to reach for his calculator, I was 18 per cent over the applicable speed limit.
When all the laborious paper work was completed, the officer concerned saw me on my way with what I understand to be their regulation parting shot, "Drive carefully sir, and watch your speed." Now there's an oxymoron, if ever there was one!
At the time of the offence I was driving safely indeed, but not watching my speed. However, since my offence I have both good news and bad news for the road police. I am now a changed man. I now watch my speed like a hawk and as a consequence I've become a menace to myself, my passengers, and to all other road users in my proximity.
The fine I could well have lived without, but in receipt of my next superannuation payment I sent $80 back to where it came from. For the arithmetical Mr Tomlinson, who so singularly failed to grasp Mr Nieuwelaar's message, that's 25 per cent of the fortnightly stipend.
But it was the 20 demerits, which I'm stuck with for two years, which really brought me up with a round turn. I need to be able to drive, and I'm now acutely aware of how easy it is, unless you're very speed attentive, to inadvertently "win" the road police lottery and end up without a licence.
There's no gainsaying when and where these revenue gatherers will suddenly appear, armed with their hawk sets and unfilled quota.
And, as in my event, it's very easy if you're driving safely, that is watching the road rather than the instrument panel, to inadvertently put on a few clicks too many.
But my safe driving phase is now in the past, my eyes constantly monitor the tach. I have not become a slow driver. I drive to but not beyond what the law allows. I do what the man told me to do, I watch my speed.
Recently I drove from Mangonui to Whangarei. Within the first 3km I encountered six changes of speed limit, and over the 150km journey I passed through 31 changes of limit.
For Mr Tomiinson's benefit, that's a change of limit for every 4.8km travelled. So there was much during that journey that required me to keep my eyes in the office to the detriment of an ongoing focus on the road ahead.
The other problem I've discovered about driving to, but not beyond the limit, is the detrimental effect this has on the behaviour of following drivers. They get damn angry, they tailgate me, and then perform all manner of dangerous overtaking manoeuvres. I can well understand their frustration.
On the Whangarei trip I drove through four separate areas each signposted as "Road works, 30 km/h" in which the seal was unbroken and where, apart from a few cones about, no road works were in evidence.
The traffic behind me wanted to box on through these patches at a smarter clip, as I myself would previously have done. But now I'm totally constrained by the prospect of blue people who pop up out of nowhere and who have the power to strip me of my licence over minor offences.
So if you're out and about this Christmas, keep an eye out for me. You'll remember me from previous years. I was the one you saw driving sensibly and safely. Now I'm the one that's watching my speed.
* Ralph Gardiner is a retired labour relations practitioner.
