Death wish drivers slammed

The video, taken from a dashcam in the car of Nelson town councillor Neil McGowan, clearly shows a dark-coloured Kia Cee’d speed through a red light at a busy Nelson junction, and come just seconds from hitting an oncoming Mini, seemingly carrying a child passenger.Coun. McGowan said: “I had stopped at the lights at Halifax Road and King’s Causeway when this car just came speeding from behind, going straight through the lights.“It was just sheer luck that it missed the Mini. I was gobsmacked, in fact I cringed when I saw it. We have serious problems on our roads with this kind of behaviour at the moment and something needs to be done.”Coun. McGowan, who handed his video footage to police, has urged other motorists to buy dashcams which can be used as evidence to help prosecute dangerous drivers.The actions of the reckless driver on Friday evening, have been branded “idiotic” by Pendle MP Andrew Stephenson who said dangerous driving had become the biggest concern of residents in the area.

Mr Stephenson said: “Sadly it’s a persistent problem in our area, particularly in Nelson and Brierfield.“We have multiple reports of dangerous and reckless driving. Indeed, in my August surgery this was the biggest concern raised by residents.“It is scary to watch this footage and others of these idiotic drivers putting lives at risk on our roads.”The Tory MP revealed he has now spoken to the Chief Constable of Lancashire Police and the county council Cabinet member for highways in a bid to make our roads safer, but said there was no easy solution.He called on irresponsible drivers to think twice next time they get behind the wheel of a car, and added that education and enforcement could only do so much.“I would say to these drivers, who thankfully are in a minority, to think about the potential consequences of their driving.“We live in a very densely populated area with a lot of young children. Jumping a red light could save you seconds but it could also have devastating consequences.“Such dangerous driving is also creating fear and stress for other motorists and pedestrians, that is why I went to the top.“I know police and county resources are stretched but I think we need some more enforcement and road-calming measures, as well as education, to be introduced to stop this irresponsible behaviour.”

Burnley MP Julie Cooper said: “Reckless driving costs lives. Red lights, speed limits are all in place for a reason – to keep us all safe.“We all have days when we are really busy and there don’t seem to be enough hours in the day and a red traffic light is slowing us down but ignoring a red light is an extremely dangerous as well as being illegal.”