Pete Croney

I drove down the A127 to go to Nate's excellent BBQ on Saturday evening. 600m before the 40 limit there was a Police van and Police car, with a camera set up in front of the van. 200m further towards the 40 limit was a plain red van, with another sodding camera [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img] These two cameras were in the 70 limit. Just inside the 40 limit, two traffic cars were parked in the cycle lane.

Half a mile further on, they had coned off one lane of the dual carriageway. It wasn't an accident or anything, they had set up an area to pull over cars into, where another 3 police cars were parked up. After this were yet another 2 traffic cars parked in the cycle lane.

In total, 8 police cars and two police vans, all within about 1.5 miles.

A Scoob who was in front of us, got pulled for no reason whatsoever.

Beyond a joke [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

Gangsta Smurf

Pete ... the worst thing about all that is that a massive brawl kicked off outside the Kursaal later on in the evening and where were the police????? They were stopping cars and checking their window tints!!! One of my mates was put in Hospital because there was no police presence to stop the three guys who jumped him.

F in ridiculous - they (the police) say that 'cruisers' are the scurge of southend, however maybe they should concentrate on the drugs, imigrant influx and apparent no rulez attitude to post club friday and saturday nights! The local council even promote the cruise scene on their 'reasons to visit southend' website - what a joke!!

Pete Croney

That says it all Rob, sorry to hear about your mate.

We are being persecuted for owning cars, but someone can give you a slap or go mugging without any fear of being caught [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img]

Old_Fart

Sorry, can't agree. My kids love walking around Southend seafront but there are always ***** around driving too quickly for the conditions, so it's always a bit nerve wracking if a sprog walks ahead/wanders off.
I'm sick of reading complaints about speedcameras in Southend. If they were sticking them up around Hanningfield I'd be a bit more disturbed .
Keep to the speedlimits in town and you don't have to worry. Save the revs for elsewhere.
If fewer people were to show off in Southend then the police presence would dissapear and innocent folk like Pete described wouldn't have to be worried about being pulled for no reason.
All IMHO
Chuck

Gangsta Smurf

Chuck .... since the 70s Southend has been a weekly place for cruisers to meet and show off their cars. I agree with your comments about not speeding around the town - so put more cameras in the 30mph zones and around the high street ... there is absolutely no need to cone off an entire lane of a 70mph road and pull over people because their exhausts sound a little loud, or their windows look a little dark - that is revenue generation, not safety preservation! IMHO if you come to southend on a saturday night you should be aware that it IS cruise night - I have a little niece and nephew and If they go out on a sat night to Southend I am already in the frame of mind to not let them out of my sight. Sat night is car night, just like the bikers have their night - this has been known for years.

IMHO the police can cone off and pull over as many cars as they want but they will never stop Southend being the weekly home of the cruise! The more they f about the more people will seek out other venues, which are indeed dangerous ... the problem will just multiply out.

Priority needs to be put on drugs and p!ss heads - only the other day a group of lads walking past my car while I was stopped and proceeded to sell drugs to another group of lads - that annoys me cos nobody was around to stop it. Also the people who come from all around to the clubs in southend because they know a fight will kick off and they can 'av a go' too.

Windowtints & other petty motor offences vrs drugs and violent assaults

I know which one of the above needs the most attention.

All IMHO

[Edited by Gangsta Smurf - 7/22/2003 1:12:26 PM]

Pete Croney

Chuck

I agree with you 100%. I would love to see coppers walking along the seafront on a Friday or Saturday night. It would cut Southend's violent crime at a stroke and make the idiots who want to speed in the 30 limit think twice.

My complaint is the massive police presence on the A127. I guess stopping fights doesn't generate any revenue.

[Edited by Pete Croney - 7/22/2003 1:13:14 PM]

Old_Fart

Watching/spotting the cameras is half the fun these days...adds some excitenment, and quite seriously it makes all drivers more observant, which is *a good thing*.
Chucky

POC

I really think the police should try to manage the 'cruisers' rather than try to push them out, I've been to southend quite a few time, always a fantastic atmosphere.

I'm all for the speed cameras in town and pulling people for driving like loonies along the seafront, last time I was there I was almost knocked down by some **** driving like a tosser by the end of the pier, I then got a bollocking from my missus for giving the bloke a mouthfull!

Cameras on the 127 are also a good idea, speeds (myself included) have been known to get a little out of hand on that road (hi Phiroze )

In short they should try to organise the night/parking a little better instead of fighting a battle they will not win.

Paul

Nate

iTrader: (2)

Rob,

The only reason you weren't happy about the people buying drugs is because they didn't buy off you !!

Nate.

Gangsta Smurf

Getting those Gangsta vibez from me eh Nate?

Danny Fisher

I wonder if Dick Grimes was there....

The police are getting a bit silly nowadays and neglecting what they should be doing. IMHO.

Yes cut down on the speeding, but how many years has the Southend seafront been used for cruising? Longer than I have been driving, and thats enough.

Dan

Old_Fart

I'd argue that cruising/ers has become more aggressive in recent times..damn the affordable turbo...when I were a lad it was all about driving slowly along the strip, being seen and checkin out the ladies...big old convertibles ruled.
Now its burnouts and donuts. (I prefer burgers and blueberry muffins)
C

IanF

Why don't you post how many people have been killed/seriously injured on the 127 over the last year?

May be that is why the police are actively policing it.

IanF

darkblueturbo

The thing I don't like about the police crack downon the cruisers is they don't seem to make the difference between people who go there and park up like most of us lot just to show off our cars, check out some others and have a good laugh together, and the muppets who rag the nuts off it right up your ar$e.

And I agree about a somewhat excessive police presence to try to sort out the problem.

As a few of you may know there's another location not a million miles away that gets a bit 'tasty' on a Saturday night for speeders.
This location is totally out of the way and the only people who are ever there know exactly what they're getting themselves into. So instead of having something like the 8 or 9 police vehicles I saw there last saturday to close the road they should take a leaf out of the book of the LA police... close off the area to other traffic and let us have our fun in a relatively controlled area where the only people who are going to get hurt have only got themselves to blame and then there's no worries for the innocent bystander...

Gidney&Knowlesy

It doesn't help when people scrawl graffiti "Please are a bunch of cu888" on containers.......

As you go into Southend just b4 the BMW garage you'll see what I mean....

Gangsta Smurf

Only telling the truth Xtreme

Adrian F

Essex Police are not primarliy interested in saving lives just making money. If all this focus on traffic rules saved lives they would have found the money to do it years ago. Now they get loads of Paid over time out of it they suddenly find it important yet since they have adopted the Gatso as they main anti-crime weapon road deaths in the county have risen.

I live in Essex and don't do the cruise scene but i do suffer the down side of poor policing due to the incorrect focusing of resources on Speed.

Nate

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Well said Adrian !!

NAte.

Stuart J

If they spend all their time stoping generally inocent motorists they dont have to risk hurting themselves stopping fights & sorting out druggies. Also easier in court for them if it gets that far because most motoring offences are easy to prove, after all a camera never lies & most motorists wont argue for risk of a bigger fine, more points more expensive insurance etc.

Nick1

The last two serious accidents I can remember on the A127 are as follows.

In the 80s two police officers showing off through the Rayleigh Cutting near the weir lost control at high speed in the Ford RS200 and killed themselves.

Last year a car broke down near the garage in the Rayleigh cutting and it was being pushed and trafic came round the bend and hit the person and the car I beleive a few lost their lives.

So out of these two there was only one accident caused from speeding and that was the boys in blue

I think Essex police should listen to what the Manchester police have said about putting more resources into crime instead of keep targeting the motorists

rozzer

Nick1
Get your facts right 5th March 1987 one officer, a good friend, was killed at Basildon in a Sierra Cosworth not a RS200, the reason for the blitz is because of 4 fatal accidents by the 40/National limit by the borough boundary in the last 18 months the council are talking about a 50 limit from the Weir!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gangsta Smurf

Oh that would be a wonderful idea wouldn't it - a 50 limit on the road into Southend! What a bunch of complete retards the council and police are!

There are about a dozen fatal accidents on the M25 each year, I don't see the police and councils imposing a stupidly low limit on that and coning it down to one lane to check whether the cars being driven on it are worthy to do so.

Because of three accidents on the A127 - outside southend - lets use the excuse to blame the cruisers and have a blitz on them - increasing revenue for the police, and given them a chance to rag their top of the range motors. Complete waste of everybodies time.

I've had to call the police twice in the last month and each time I was left with the phone ringing. I have lost all respect for them now!!

Lets face it, the Police and council are wrong in this instance, and the sooner they change their ethos and concentrate on 'real' problems (like drugs, assaults and illegal immigrants) and leave the saturday night cruise (a 20 year established event) alone, the safer the community will be.

W@nkers!

Nate

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