Sports car highlights road safety message

Officers from the South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership have teamed up with Lotus to drive home the road safety message with the help of a Evora sports car in police livery at Meadowhall shopping centre on Saturday.

Among the initiatives priorities will be reinforcing the importance of wearing a seatbelt and clamping down on the illegal use of mobile phones while driving.

SYP’s Road Policing Group will be joined by staff from South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue and the Drive for Life campaign for the event. 

A driving simulator, beer goggles and breath testing machine will also be on hand for shoppers to try out.

Head of road policing in South Yorkshire, Chief Inspector Stuart Walne, said: “This campaign focuses upon young drivers, who are more inclined not to wear their seatbelt or be distracted through using mobile phones or other devices such as MP3 players.

“We don’t have any plans to use such cars to police the roads in South Yorkshire, however Lotus have kindly loaned the car to the South Yorkshire Police completely free of charge to help bring home the important messages about being safe and responsible behind the wheel. 

“I’m sure many people will want to see this stunning vehicle in full police livery and speak with the officers present.”

Further reinforcing the message that officers hope to deliver on Saturday, Chief Insp Walne added: “According to statistics you are twice as likely to die in a crash if your do not wear a seatbelt and research shows that you are four times more likely to crash if you use a mobile phone while driving.

“Our message is ‘Stay alive. Always wear your seatbelt, never use a mobile phone while driving.’”