The Kuala Lumpur police want the public to stop sharing information about police presence and roadblocks through Waze. According to the KL police chief Datuk Azmi Abu Kassim, reporting police presence will only hamper enforcement efforts against motorists driving under the influence of alcohol and those who commit other traffic offences.
Azmi added that road users should be aware of the dangers they face due to negligence from drunk drivers, drivers who run red lights and those who drive against traffic flow. The chief said those who have never been affected by the misfortune caused by the carelessness and negligence of traffic offenders would not be able to feel the pain and suffering victims’ families have to endure. He hopes the public especially road users will cooperate with the police instead of trying to help those who commit road offences.
Reporting police presence has been a standard feature on Waze which helps other road users to reduce their speed at potential speed traps and to avoid roadblocks. While it isn’t really clear if using the Waze reporting feature is illegal in Malaysia, it is an offence to use your phone while driving. Reporting police presence on mobile apps has been banned in countries such as France.
Last year, the Surrey police force in the United Kingdom caused some controversy after hinting that they dropped police presence reports on Waze in an attempt to make drivers slow down on their roads. In replies to some criticism, the police force said they were not responsible for policing budget cuts that decimated traffic units around the country while insisting that their actions were clever and innovative use of technology.
Hardly desperate – clever and innovative use of technology.
— Roads Policing – Surrey Police – UK (@SurreyRoadCops) August 29, 2022
Have a look at your priorities – when did the action of a middle lane hogger kill anyone?
Now compare that to 34% of fatal collisions where excess speed was the contributing factor.
We’ll focus on the killers
[ SOURCE, IMAGE SOURCE ]
