SHOPPERS in Poole were able to sit in a sports car, challenge their reflexes in a reaction pod and even get an eye test as Dorset Police hosted a road safety event.
Police units along with various fire and road safety teams were spread around Dolphin Shopping Centre on Saturday, November 27, for a “first of its kind” event in the area.
Split into five zones, shoppers were keen to get involved with different aspects of road safety awareness – both verbally and physically.
Among the most popular settings was the enforcement-based Zone 5 which housed a Police Lotus Evora sports car, a safety camera team, a breathalyser station and a light reaction pod.
Users were challenged to test their reaction speeds by hitting various red lights as they illuminated, with scores tallied by an officer. However, users were then asked to don a pair of goggles which simulated being over the alcohol limit.
The average user saw their reaction speed drop by more than 30 per cent after putting on the goggles.
A police bedecked Lotus Evora was also showcased, with officers explaining the vehicle is provided free of charge by Lotus to encourage safe driving.
MPC Jamie Nicholson of the road casualty reduction unit said: “We use this primarily as an engagement vehicle to shows and events to engage with different members of each of the communities who are normally harder for us to engage with.
“In terms of its value to us, if anything happened to it we would lose a significant amount of engagement. If we turned up to a car show for example in an unmarked BMW, people there would likely just walk the other way. However if we turn up in this, people want to find out more and we can then get into a discussion about what we do. It’s absolutely fantastic for us.”
The event also covered age-related factors in driving safety. Zone 2, outside Holland and Barrett, housed representatives from the Child Road Safety Team.
Team member Emma Norton said: “With child road safety it’s really about asking what issues people are having locally, often outside schools, and how they can implement good safe behaviour to their children.”
Conversely, Zone 4 featured information and support for older drivers and their families. Older people were invited to have a free eye test.
On hand were representatives from Wessex Driveability, a bespoke driving assessment service, which does not aim to “keep older people off the road”, instead offering advice and guidance for older drivers unsure about their capability to continue driving.
Police and Crime Commissioner David Sidwick was also in attendance, engaging with officers and members of the public. He said: “This is all about preventing accidents on our roads. It’s about taking just that little bit extra care with your vehicle.
“If we save one life by someone coming to us and talking about road safety, we’ve done our job.
“The first priority for me is cutting crime and anti-social behaviour but within that are all the issues around road safety like speeding and using mobile phones so it all fits very well.
“I hope people have had fun, I hope they’ve learnt something and find it useful.”
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