The VIAS road safety institute suggested in the media on Monday that speed checks should be privatised, an idea that is not opposed by the federal police service, which says it is looking into ways to make roadside traffic checks more effective.
The service does not rule out using private companies to enable its officers to focus on offences linked to driving under the influence of alcohol, but civilians will not be allowed to impose fines, the office of Interior Minister Pieter De Crem said.
An increasing number of motorists drive under the influence of alcohol at night, especially people between the ages of 26 and 29, according to figures from the VIAS Institute. VIAS is suggesting the privatisation of speed checks which, it says, would allow the police to do more alcohol tests, as the institute has been advocating.
Making the speed tests more effective is a priority for the federal police service, which “is currently reflecting on how to make them more effective, and does not rule out resorting to private companies for certain tasks,” the office of Minister De Crem explained, “but there will never be any question of private individuals imposing fines on other individuals.”
The Brussels Times
