Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Motorists in Carmarthenshire are being urged to tread carefully by carrying out regular checks on their car tyres. October is National Tyre Safety Month and the council’s road safety unit are encouraging drivers to check their tyres, especially before long journeys. The message is simple: Don’t chance it – check it! Drivers should make sure their tyres are at the correct pressure and replace them when worn or damaged. Cars, light goods vehicles and light trailers must have a tread depth of at least 1.6mm across the central three-quarters of the breadth of the tread and around the entire circumference. Motorcycles, large vehicles and passenger carrying vehicles must have a minimum legal tread depth of 1mm. Executive Board Member for the Environment, Cllr Hazel Evans said: “Making sure your vehicle has the correct tyre pressure is vital to your safety on the road. Under-inflated tyres affect handling and grip, and are also much more likely to have a dangerous sudden rapid deflation, es...

Motorists and passengers are being reminded to belt up as part of an all Wales seatbelt campaign launched by police. Not wearing a seatbelt can be a fatal decision even on short, familiar journeys and at low speeds; in fact you are twice as likely to die in a collision if you are not wearing a seatbelt. Police officers will be monitoring the roads for those ignoring the law during the two-week crackdown, supported by Road Safety Wales. Both drivers and passengers can be fined £100 for not wearing a seatbelt. If prosecuted in court the maximum fine is £500. The driver is also responsible for making sure that passengers under the age of 14 are wearing a seatbelt, or using the correct child restraint for their height and age, or they can be fined. During the 2015 campaigns held in March and September, a total of 482 people in Carmarthenshire were stopped by police for not wearing their seatbelt and issued with on-the-spot fines. Council road safety officers are backing the campaign and ...

No-one will accept they are a bad driver, but a gentle reminder of the basic skills can do your confidence a world of good. And this is never truer than for older drivers. So much has changed since their learned to drive from road layouts to the density of traffic. Carmarthenshire County Council’s Road Safety Unit, supported by the Community Safety Partnership, has taken a proactive approach towards improving the road safety of the older driver population and has been working with the 50+ Forum to pilot ‘refresher’ driver awareness sessions. More than 50 drivers across the county have taken part in courses in the last few months. In the UK there is an increasing population of drivers over the age of 60 years. Within Wales there are a total of 544,602 driving licence holders aged 60 or over, with 58,579 of these being over the age of 80. County road safety manager Keith Griffiths said: “With these numbers set to increase we have introduced these sessions and they’re proving popular. “...

Motorists and farmers are being reminded to make sure their vehicles, caravans and trailers are roadworthy before they take to the road. Carmarthenshire council road safety manager Keith Griffiths said trailers not in use all the year round can fail with disastrous consequences when taken out on to the road after a long lay up. He urges motorists and farmers to ensure their vehicles and trailers are road worthy before they hit the road. The warning comes as figures from the Highways Agency show that between April and June 2013 alone, there have been 1,408 towing incidents on the UK’s roads, 246 in the south west with 43 in Carmarthenshire. The Carmarthenshire Road Safety Action Group have encouraged random roadside checks following an increase of incidents with towed vehicles being involved in accidents many of which have been caravans being towed to holiday campsites through or into the county from elsewhere. The Highways Agency has warned that towing incidents are often caused by ove...

A series of punchy and strikingly graphic safety messages to young drivers and riders by Carmarthenshire Council transport division is designed to heighten awareness of road safety issues. A monthly release of graffiti style information cards is running with each carrying a hard hitting message from using the mobile when driving to driving on bald tyres. If you are stuck behind a bus you will certainly get the message with many of the cards being displayed on rear-of-bus advertising. Distributed to schools and colleges the series of cards will run for more than a year as more of the messages are developed. County Road Safety manager Keith Griffiths said: “The messages are aimed at the young drivers who are more likely to be involved in an accident than older drivers. “ He said the campaign would run and run with no limit on time because the message needed to be put out to successive generations of young motorists. “Of course, we are looking to refresh the ideas and many of the bes...

Drink-driver 'depressed after unprovoked attack' | This is South Wales A Cross Hands man who told police he drove while more than three times the legal limit had been depressed after an unprovoked attack, a court has heard. Appearing before Carmarthen magistrates, Colin Richard Rees, 53, of Carmarthen Road, admitted drink-driving on Carmarthen Road on April 8. A breath-test reading of 119 micrograms of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath was recorded, the legal limit being 35.

Motorist dies following road traffic collision on A470 near Llangurig | Dyfed Powys Police | Heddlu Dyfed Powys A young woman has died following a road traffic collision on the A470 between Rhyader and Llangurig.

Suspicious incident: Driver of black vehicle targeting school children | Dyfed Powys Police | Heddlu Dyfed Powys Dyfed-Powys Police is appealing for witnesses regarding incidents involving a small black vehicle possibly a Renault Clio in the Aberystwyth area. The occupants of the vehicle have approached separate young female schoolchildren from two comprehensive schools and suggested that they accept a lift – this gave the females enough concern to leave the scene immediately.

Newcastle Emlyn school run parents have been stopped parking up at the school entrance because of the risk to pupils and pedestrians. They have been asked to use a nearby car park instead and exercise care near the school. Cars blocking the school gates have been reversing into the approach road into New Road while pupils, parents and carers are walking into school. The school, after being advised of the dangers of this practice by the Authority's health and safety officer, have asked all parents dropping pupils off to park in the bottom of the car park which is not used by the mart and is adjacent to the school and then use the designated access gate. County executive board member for transport services Cllr Philip Hughes said: "We make no excuses for taking action to ensure public and pedestrian safety. The actions proposed would significantly reduce the risk of injury to pedestrians and damage to vehicles whilst allowing unobstructed access for emergency vehicles. "The...