Ensuring drivers’ vision levels are up to standard should be a year-round issue, but Road Safety Week (RSW) presents an opportune time for the sector to go hell for leather in raising awareness to a wider audience. But I sometimes wonder how much the issue resonates with the public.
I had a look at some of the initiatives police forces were undertaking for RSW and came across Essex Police’s Vision Zero enforcement day in Colchester. ‘This is more like it. A zero tolerance to poor vision behind the wheel,’ I thought to myself, but I left a little disappointed, because the focus was solely on speeding.
Now, I’m not suggesting drivers’ vision is a bigger issue than speeding, which sadly kills far more people each year. Could the Vision Zero initiative include some awareness of drivers’ vision? In my opinion, it absolutely could and should. On a single day in Colchester, police stopped 65 vehicles, with 60 speeding tickets issued, four vehicles seized, and one driver was issued with a prohibition notice for ‘vehicle in dangerous condition’.
Forty tickets were issued, including offences such as not wearing seatbelts and mobile phone use while driving. Gallingly, four drivers were reported for illegal window tints that limited the driver’s vision. I’m not sure why a roadside vision check couldn’t have been part of those stops.
I have asked Essex Police and will hopefully update you with a response. Time could have been a factor, but properly assessing the condition of vehicles and measuring light transmission through tinted windows aren’t things that can be rushed.
The Association of Optometrists and Glaucoma UK have done some sterling work in and around RSW, but if we can’t get those that uphold the law more engaged, the issue of drivers’ vision might be going down a dead end.