SPEEDING appears to be an issue that it is plaguing the nation and I think we are all guilty of rolling our eyes and muttering under our breath at inconsiderate motorists. There could be many reasons why someone speeds, but there is no excuse to put someone else's life at risk.

I had the chance to join Buckley's Community Speed Watch group to see what they do to help tackle the area's speeding issues.

Buckley councillor and town mayor, Arnold Woolley, was joined by his wife Paula, and Norma Mollard and John Holiday before they took their places at one of the main hotspots - Drury New Road.

Cllr Woolley said: "We get many complaints off people they were doing the right speed, but our equipment catches people up to 25 yards.

"If people can't see a road sign, how can they see a child? Driving at speed is antisocial. They should be served an anti-social behaviour order (ASBO).

"I think the problem here is it's a lack of hazard awareness and one can understand why there's an issue in a lot of urban areas for the 20 is plenty standard.

"Somehow, somewhere, we have got to make drivers realise that driving isn't a right, it's a responsibility and a lot of drivers are not living up to that.

"We received complaints from residents, especially elderly residents at Jubilee Court, who are on the vulnerable side.

"When their sight isn't what it should be, they are looking at the vehicle in the distance and assuming it is doing 30mph and then stepping out to cross the road, only to find out it's actually doing 50mph. Within five minutes of us being there, you can bet we will be all over Facebook."

It was interesting to see that seven motorists were found to be speeding within the first 15 minutes, with some doing more than 50mph in the 30mph zone.

What also intrigued me, was how many people pulled over to give abuse, with one motorist asking the group if they have got nothing better to do. The people in the speed watch group, like many others across the UK, are giving up their own time to help keep their community safe. It would be too late if someone were to be killed.

The team aims to get at least two hours a week in to tackle up to 18 hotpots across the town, including Alltami Road, Bannel Lane and Westbury Drive.

On June 13, I was told 24 motorists were recorded as speeding and the highest the team has ever recorded is 49 speeding motorists in one-hour, last year.

John said: "I'm keen to encourage people to ride a bike and this is one of the biggest deterrents for people riding bikes - speeding motorists.

"If you hit a child at 20mph they will probably survive, at 30mph they are dead and I'm afraid people's attitudes means they are not respecting the law.

"Roads aren't built for just cars; they are for everyone, whether cyclist or horseriders. At the moment they are just full of inconsiderate motorists.

"Unfortunately, we get a lot of abuse, but we do get a lot of thumbs up and a lot of requests from people asking us to go to their street. Why is speeding acceptable?"

Cllr Woolley started the speed watch group in 2016 after many complaints from residents.

The scheme allows volunteers to monitor the speed of passing vehicles using a hand-held detection device. They cannot hand out fines, the details are passed on to the police, who will then issue a letter to the vehicle owner, reminding them of the law.

People get wound up over volunteers who want to combat speeding, but the scheme is predominantly about education. Officers will act after two or more reports of a vehicle speeding, if three letters are sent to the same vehicle owner, the force will carry out further investigations.

John added: "It's reprehensible people are sitting in armed, metal boxes, completely oblivious to the harm they can cause.

"I'm keen to ride my bike with my grandchildren down to Deeside but how do we get there other than on busy roads?

"I'm going to be hesitant taking my young grandchildren because of the traffic and speeding motorists.

"I'm the first to admit cyclists need education, but on the other hand, should 40 tonne trucks be driving around that can't see what is going around them and should people be speeding excessively?

"It's the attitude, why is speeding acceptable? People are saying to us to get a life instead of thinking what they are doing is anti-social and putting lives at risk."

Norma said: "We have nearly had our toes run over and we are called the old biddies, but we are here to make our roads safe."

On June 14, when I attended, 14 speeders were recorded between 6.30pm-7.30pm, of which 13 came up clear and road legal at the DVLA. The top speed noted was more than 50mph in the 30mph limit.

The speed watch groups require a lot of time and dedication to keep our roads safe. Cllr Woolley told me many people are put off, not because of the abuse they could face, but because of the time it consumes.

Cllr Woolley said: "The problem I think is not many people will do it because it's time consuming. It can amount up to seven hours of work by the time you've got people onsite, done the hour work and then completed all the checks and paperwork afterwards.

"However, in a nation where we have not enough teachers, doctors and police officers, we have to wonder what on earth are the government doing, because they are not on planet Earth."

Hats off to those who will face all weather conditions to improve the safety of their streets for residents in rural areas.

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Is the key to tackling speeding down to education or would tougher punishments help? Email us at news@leaderlive.co.uk