Surrey County Council Deputy Leader David Hodge marked Road Safety Awareness Week (week commencing 23 November) by inspecting a new Drive SMART billboard on Godstone Road, Whyteleafe.
He was joined by Chelsham and Farleigh Parish Council Chairman Simon Peniston-Bird and local resident Bob Anderson, who have both pledged their support to the campaign against anti-social driving.
Mr Peniston-Bird said: "Anti-social driving is a very important issue for the parish council and local residents, especially in view of the rural nature of the area with its narrow country lanes. We have already raised the issue of excessive speeding with Surrey County Council, and were delighted to hear that the council is putting £1million into a joint campaign with Surrey Police to combat anti-social driving. There has been clear evidence of the impact of the initiative in the area, and the parish council welcomes it warmly."
Bob Anderson said "I live on a winding rural road, typical of the area, which is increasingly used as a cut-through by vehicles being driven at excessive speed. On top of that more and more heavy goods vehicles use the road, spurred on by indiscriminate use of satellite navigation, eroding the edges of the road and, in one recent case, even demolishing a tree. The county council is already taking action to address these issues, but the Drive SMART campaign has come along at just the right time to remind people of their responsibilities when driving, and the negative impact their selfish behaviour can have on other people."
David Hodge welcomed these comments and added: "The support the Drive SMART campaign is receiving speaks volumes about how big a concern anti-social driving in all its forms is to our residents."
Drive SMART is a year-long campaign by Surrey County Council and Surrey Police to tackle the problem of anti-social driving. One of the first initiatives by Dr Andrew Povey, the newly elected Leader of Surrey County Council, was to pledge £1million to set up the campaign after the issue was regularly identified as a concern by residents to local councillors.