What is Drive SMART?
Drive SMART is a joint initiative launched by Surrey County Council and Surrey Police to tackle anti-social driving.
Surrey residents have consistently raised this issue as a top priority at panel meetings, in feedback to local officers and councillors and through surveys.
To help address anti-social driving Surrey County Council pledged £1million for a year-long campaign, working alongside Surrey Police and other agencies to carry out activity to educate motorists and change driver behaviour.
When was the campaign launched?
Drive SMART was launched on Monday 7 September 2009 by the Leader of Surrey County Council, Dr Andrew Povey, and the Chief Constable of Surrey Police, Mark Rowley, at a Roadside Education and Enforcement Day (REED) in Guildford.
What is anti-social driving?
Any road behaviour that affects other peoples' quality of life in a negative way would be considered as anti-social driving. It could cause an accident or serious injury, or it could simply be annoying or inconvenient to other road users, causing them stress and anxiety.
Anti-social driving can include a range of things such as:
• speeding
• using a hand-held mobile phone whilst driving
• bad or dangerous parking
• tailgating or aggressive driving
• illegal off-road riding/driving.
What does Drive SMART involve?
The campaign includes both enforcement and education activities throughout the year to tackle anti-social driving behaviour. This includes investing in equipment, training and officer time to carry out enforcement, as well as high profile educational campaigns to highlight the issue and encourage drivers to change their behaviour.
Who is involved in Drive SMART?
Surrey County Council and Surrey Police are the main partners in Drive SMART, but we are working closely with the Surrey Safety Camera Partnership, Surrey Fire & Rescue and the county’s district and borough councils to ensure that the activities and campaign messages are communicated as widely as possible. We have also recently joined forces with Mercedes-Benz Driving Academy to support the launch of their new RoadSense scheme, which aims to educate 14-18 year olds on how to become good drivers before they get behind the wheel.
What is the aim of Drive SMART?
The campaign will increase Surrey Police’s capability to detect anti-social driving behaviour, whilst educating drivers about how their actions on the road impact on others. The aim is that drivers change their negative behaviour, making Surrey’s roads safer and less stressful for everybody.
Ultimately the campaign aims to reduce numbers of people killed and seriously injured as a result of road traffic collisions.
How can you get involved?
Drive SMART needs to work for Surrey’s residents, so we are encouraging everyone to feed in their anti-social driving issues to local neighbourhood inspectors, in a bid to tackle the problems in their areas.
The inspectors will assess the issues and decide on the best way to tackle them. If you are a Surrey resident just call Surrey Police on 0845 125 2222 and ask to speak to the neighbourhood inspector for your area.