The illegal street racing debate is something that pops up occasionally, often when it’s been the cause of a serious crash.
In 2005, seven people were injured when a car participating in an illegal race hit a group of spectators. Since then, Police in NSW have had the power to confiscate cars used in illegal races.
The subject arose once again recently; a couple were killed when their car was hit by two vehicles suspected of being raced illegally along the Great Western Highway.
Regardless of whether it was an organised street race or a spontaneous act of hooning ending in disaster, is this tragedy a one-off or does more need to be done about illegal street racing immediately?
Deterring illegal street racers
Queensland has increased its jail sentences for illegal racers from three to five years. If someone is killed as a result of street racing, the maximum sentence is 14 years – nearing the sentence for murder.
The punishments are lighter in NSW and include confiscation and impoundment of vehicle, loss of licence for twelve months and a maximum $2200 fine. According to NSW Police Minister David Campbell, more money is being spent on wheel clamps to immobilise cars used in illegal races. This has prompted the opposition to call for heavier penalties, including jail terms similar to those seen in QLD.
Will this deter drivers any more than the threat of having their car confiscated?
Street racing as a culture
Documentaries, computer games, websites and underground as well as Hollywood films have all covered the subject of illegal street racing. Evidently, street racing has a market.
It would be unfair to assume everybody interested in vehicle modification participates in illegal street racing. But does the modification of cars and street racing go hand in hand? If so, can anything be done to change this?
Legal races
There’s no doubt racing mates in a safe, official capacity on real tracks using proper timing equipment would be attractive to some young drivers, and, importantly, get it off the streets.
Wicked Wednesdays at Western Sydney International Dragways gives racing enthusiasts the opportunity to participate in off-street racing in a controlled and safe environment.
Similarly, Calder Park in Victoria also has popular off-street racing nights where races are held in conjunction with the police.
But interest in these legal races far outweighs availability. Different vehicle classes are run each week at Calder Park and the wait between class meets can be over a month.
Are these legal races a solution or is this another example of condoning a problem deemed too difficult to fix?
What, if anything, will minimise incidents of illegal street racing so we don’t only hear about it when it kills somebody?
As per on TV : crush their cars , enforce them to watch it done , and dump them on their front yard .
Everything is either illegal or inappropriate these days. It’s gone too far.
Remember the movie Grease, when an “illegal” race between two T-bird cars ended in a crash? Does anyone seriously think the nanny state, with the assistance of Mr Plod, can stop something that has been happening for decades?
The problem is not that the participants might hurt themselves (they are adults and do it by choice), but that innocent bystanders might be injured. But the problem is also quite small and doesn’t warrant a moral panic. Out of 2000 people killed in traffic accidents each year, a tiny percentage are attributable to street racing.
If the “authorities” were serious about reducing the risk, they would remove the regulatory barriers to burnouts, drag racing, track racing and other hot car activities on private property. There is obviously a market for these things – it just needs the government to get the hell out of the way.
Illegal Street Racing has been an ongoing issue for Generations.
As a P-Plater myself, i think for the Government it is a very difficult issue to tackle – And needs to be aimed at a number of different factors.
Not only should they be aiming at the younger generation of drivers, but also to ANY driver on our roads.
Young drivers already get slugged with High Insurance & Green Slip prices, and we are also then stereo-typed by older drivers when we receive so much publicity from car accidents.
However, you see older more experienced drivers on the roads who don’t know how to obey the road rules, cut people off, no indicators – because they are lazy drivers, and do not have to go through the testing that this generation of young drivers now does.
One thing alot of drivers over-look, is that full licensed drivers are also involved in just as many, if not more, road accidents then younger drivers.
One of the major factors in the increased risk in Street Racing nowadays is there are faster and more enhanced motor vehicles on the market, and younger people have greater access to these type of cars, whether it be saving their hard earned wages or taking out Loans.
Another factor within this issue, is there are currently alot more motor vehicles on the road, compared to what there was when our Parents started out driving.
With the implementation of the 3 Year P-Plate rule from 12 mths introduced a few years ago, it now also means there will more P-Platers on the roads, and for longer.
Street Racing is always going to be a major issue on our roads. Rather then just taking away their hard-earned cars, maybe we should be put through tougher training & Testing and perhaps vehicle control programs to assist these inexperienced drivers in these situations?!
I AGREE WITH CRUSHING THEIR CARS – ONLY THEN MIGHT THEY CATCH ON THAT STREET RACING IS DANGEROUS TO THEMSELVES AND OTHERS USUALLY THE INNOCENT IS HURT OR KILLED
I THINK THEIR CARS SHOULD BE CRUSHED
THEN THEY MIGHT TAKE NOTICE THAT STREET RACING IS ILLEGAL – NOTHING ELSE SEEMS TO WORK
I agree with the idea of crushing the vehicles into cubes and dumping them in the front yard of the offender/offenders parents property.
My 11 year old son, who very much enjoys street racing games is already planning his first car and requisite vehicle modifications. He has spoken a number of times about wanting to become an illegal street racer. I am thankful that his interest has begun now at age 11 instead of at 15 or 16.
We have started the process of educating him including covering acceptable use of vehicles on the road, as well as games vs real life.
When he is old enough I will encourage him (and accompany him) to track days where we can both use a car to its limits.
In addition – I will be fitting a trace module to his first car. The privilege of driving will governed be a strict adherence to the speed limits. I can then be a good excuse for him and the bad guy among his peers.
I think the answer is not in prohibition but in providing suitable avenues as an outlet and good education. I doubt very much that you can stamp out the ‘need for speed’ in young (or older) drivers… we should simply promote the proper places.
I believe that there is place for crushing the cars when they have been caught in illegal car chases.
First time a hefty fine or a jail term and for a repeat offender he or she has to push the button and see their ” dream car” crushed in front of their eyes.
Their witnessing of this process will be retold to all their hooning mates and this may stop this big problem.
But also stop the stupidity of young people from 6 years old untill they receive their L plates going into video parlours, where they can race without doing them any harm physically, but mentally they are taught there the wrong message.
All criminals like these should pay for police time, court time, costs of hospitals,etc so they need to sell their cars to pay for it. The minimum fine can be set at 1 million. What kind of a stupid society are we that they don’t make them pay. It is our immoralty that encourages these animals. Also they should be charged with attempted murder and murder. They should have to do hard labour out in the mines for a 10 to life sentence with no parole and the jails should be similar to Asia. Not a holiday camp that are enjoyed by animals such as the Anita Coby murderers and Peter Falconia, pack rapists and the murderers of the 2 elderly motorists recently in the south of Sydney.
Street racing is nothing new, it has been going on since cars were invented and is not limited to any particular demographic. Nor is it likely to stop as long as mankind possesses a competitive spirit.
It seems to me therefore, that a better education policy is probably the best way of reducing the problem.
From my observations of driver behaviour on the F3, it seems that there is a tendency for those on P’s (especially the green ones) to want to flex their muscles & exceed the speed limit. For some strange reason, this seems to be even more apparent when they are driving a modified ute or 4X4. They still manage to get supposedly under performing vehicles to perform at high speeds and often they are being driven quite aggressively with little to no thought as to the danger or possible consequences.
My suggestion to help reduce this “need for speed” is to grade licenses based on driver ability and to permit the holders of special licenses to drive cars with more power. They could also be encouraged (the holders of special licenses) to display a special plate to designate that they have actually proven themselves to have this ability under strict conditions, thus reducing the need to repeatedly do so every time a seemingly high powered car is near them.
In order to ensure that this in turn does not encourage the holders of said special licenses to continually “prove themselves” if provoked, as undoubtedly they would be by holders of lesser licenses, the deterrent could come in the form of immediate suspension of their licenses for a long period, with the denial of ever again gaining a special license if they are caught speeding or for other major offences.
Hopefully drivers (particularly young ones) would see that holding a special license is of even greater status than their one off “superman” deeds on public roads.
The cost of such a scheme could be on a user pays basis and if it leads to far less crashes, then benefits to the public purse would be significant, particularly given the cost of hospitalisation of accident victims these days.
This type of scheme would be far less prejudicial to third party stakeholders such as finance companies unsuspecting parents or friends (in the case of “borrowed cars”) etc, than some of the more spectacular schemes that have been aired lately (e.g crushing the “offending” vehicles).
Special event days at venues like Eastern Creek could also be held for holders of these licenses to satisfy their need for speed and to enable them to hone their skills in a safer environment.
Encourage young people to join car clubs, who often have private grounds for Motorcross style events or run events on public circuits such as Wakefield Park at reasonable cost.
How many of these people do not have interesting jobs? In many cases people may be on the dole or on pensions and rely on street racing for self esteem. The unemployed need one on one help to achieve employment and a more meaningful life.
Again this is a hot topic. Everytime I hear that someone (other than the driver) has died as a result of street racing or trying to outrun Police I cringe. As a driver it is my biggest fear that I will be wiped out at an intersection by someone having a drag or trying to get away from the law.
I have a very firm and unshakeable view on this matter. If you are caught driving in either of these scenarios you should be charged with attempted murder and using a deadly weapon. No speeding fines. No negligent driving fines. Just plain old attempted murder thanks.
Strong action does need to be taken against street racers, whether they be 17 or 70. Penalties need to be much more than the puny sentences and monetary fines that are in place now. I have written to the Premier, Attorney General and Minister for Police stating my thoughts on this matter. I believe a first offender should get a minimum 12 months gaol and have their car confiscated. Should they offend a second time, a minumum sentence of 5 years gaol and their car again confiscated. A third or subsequent offence would earn them 20 years behind bars, and none of these sentences subject to parole. In all circumstances confiscated cars would be auctioned off with the money raised being put into our hospital system.
Should any of these instances of street racing result in someone being killed, then all drivers involved in the street race whether it be two or three persons, should be charged with murder and face a minimum sentence of 25 years, regardless of whether it is their first offence or not. I believe that the thought must enter their mind before they become involved in the race that if something goes wrong there is a very strong chance someone will die, and that is premeditated murder.
There will aways be accidents by drivers doing the wrong thing. Some are caused by speeding in the wrong places and inattention. Street racing has always been around and to a large extent manufacturers are to blame for promoting faster cars. This is the 70s super cars outcry repeating. Our speed limits on the good safe roads are too low. Many of these city based drivers need to get out in the country to gain experience. Its not just the P platers exceeding 50kph in suburban streets its the mothers fathers. You can never get away from the fact that we like speeding but it should be done in the right places be that on a race track or way out west. I agree there are many drivers who could not care or are ignorant of safety and some think just because they are in a 4 x4 they are safe. Don’t just blame the 17 – 24s its everyone. Nearly every thing we do has some risk.
I wish the NRMA would stop wasting my membership fees on this sort of scare-mongering. It is a real problem, I do not condone it and my heart goes out to the families of all the victims, but we’re a nation famous for betting on two flies walking up a wall. We’re increasingly promoting competition and the need to get ahead rather than the joy of participation and simply having a go, and — surprise, surprise — that same attitude permeates our driving. Then tragedy strikes and everyone comes over all self-righteous. Hypocrites.
We already have civil and traffic laws that can be applied in these situations, and the problem is simply not big enough to warrant specific campaigning. I want my money to go on improving the roads for everyone, and there’s more than enough work to be done in that area first.
I would like to know why hoons are allowed to modify their cars this should not be allowed in any shape or form. The modern car is too fast as it is without any mods.If this was made law there would be no road racing and hopefully no more innocent people killed.
First offence: crush the vehicle. Cancel licence.
Second offence: jail term & crush the vehicle.
Driving any type of motor vehicle is a privilege, not a right. This message still hasn’t got through to a small number of morons, both young and old. Hopefully with the introduction of a system whereby provisional drivers can be reported for idiotic behaviour by other motorists, the responsible parents out there will take action before the police and the courts have to.
Well the main problem with the people doing the illegal street racing, is they Have absolutely no respect for the law(well the law is an ass).
The police can arrest them charge them and then some Judge or magistrate let’s them off with a slap on the wrist.
What about compolsuray minimum sentences for this type and other life endangering breaches of the law.
Well Judge it may affet your own son, but would it be better to have your son alive and in jail than dead on the road.
Unfortunatly the nature of the beast is so, that quite often the driver survives do do the sam stupid thing again.
Remember we are in the smart state, and smart is NOT using your brain.
the other enforcement that needs to be really hit hard is drunk or DRUGGED driving. more often than not the street racers are also affeted by alcohol or drugs.
That is not smart at all, but since the judges kids are amongst the offenders , they have to be soft on them.
Crushing the cars is a fine way to make them suffer, but most of them probably havent paid for their cars, it is not the answer.
Confiscate the cars , sell them in a road worthy condition(back to standard specs.)
People with alcohol over 2 times the limit should also loose the car permanetly(no excuses, even if it is mr Beatties sonand no matter whos car it is.)
lawlessness in Australia is the norm, not an exception!!! W H Y ?????
I love the NRMA blogs. They show just how polarised and different everyones views of (or lack thereof) reality are:
“I would like to know why hoons are allowed to modify their cars this should not be allowed in any shape or form”
Well obviously stock standard cars are never involved in street racing.. and while fast, if never modified, they can’t kill people. Where is the fun in that?
I know lots of people who take stock standard cars to track days, they are generally labelled “sports cars” and are quite capable of high speed, crashing and killing.
“I believe a first offender should get a minimum 12 months gaol and have their car confiscated. ”
Yeah that’ll do it, give them more reason to run from the police, be involved in high-speed chases with a greater chance of killing more people. Forget education or harm reduction, its for sissies.
Don’t forget, these evil, evil people (actually maybe they aren’t human) love to get the chance to test their highly modified cars against stock standard police cars. It’s a thrill baby.
” have a very firm and unshakeable view on this matter. If you are caught driving in either of these scenarios ”
What? Dragging at the lights? What if you’re only dragging to the speed limit? Is that still an illegal street race?
” I wish the NRMA would stop wasting my membership fees on this sort of scare-mongering.”
Yes they should start spending it on more sensible things, like open forums such as this where members can voice their views and contribute to the debate. The article above seems pretty unbiased to me.
“But also stop the stupidity of young people from 6 years old untill they receive their L plates going into video parlours, where they can race without doing them any harm physically, but mentally they are taught there the wrong message.”
Oh yes, I remember those days. Playing Out-Run, Need for Speed on Playstation… Every time I get in my car I’m dismayed that its not a bunch of poorly rendered pixels, blarring out poor electronic music, on roads that go round and round.
I am always then cheered up by the prospect that I can grab my gun and jump around shooting people on the street with no fear of retribution.. oh wait no, I live in reality.
Well its great to see a cut section of society that have absolutely no idea what is going on.
Maybe we should start looking at better education for drivers (re-testing older drivers – yeah we will see who is smuggly blogging then when you lose your license because you can’t even do something basic like indicate or use a round about – despite driving for 20 years).
Then we can look at providing alternative outlets for these young drivers, getting them to participate in clubs, driving the message out that racing on the street is not cool – but creating an avenue for them to do it in a safer environment.
Remember kiddies, 10,000 years ago there was a good chance that you’d get killed just wandering the meandering tundra’s of the world.
Life hasn’t changed that much, its still risky no matter what way you look at it. Don’t blame society (because we all have a stake in that), simply blame the output.. it’s much easier.
I received a Motoring DVD Catalogue featuring: ‘DRIFT IT’ “with a useful pedal camera to show you exactly how it’s done”. ‘RF’ with
‘Illegal Night Drifting”. ‘RF vol. 3′ with “Illegal Street Action. ‘DRIFT IT TOKYO STYLE’ “Learn how to drift while watching the hottest talent burn rubber” ‘URBAN STREET-CAR WARRIORS’ “forey into the exciting underground world of street car culture.”
This mixed message of trying to stamp out something illegal and dangerous on the one hand and training DVD’s showing how it is done on the other doesn’t make sense. Censorship for the safety of the majority does!
Illegal street racing would be easier to police than most other offences that are policed. it is easy to detect those who are speeding, and even easier when there are two or more vehicles involved.
Police should specifically target street racers, especially at night in areas that are most likely to attract these particular groups.
When people are killed due to illegal racing, it doesn’t matter what punishment is bestowed upon the culprits after they have done the damage because innocent lives are damaged and/or lost regardless. What police need to do, and what governments need to implement, is a system that targets illigel street racers, and punishes them with the same punishment they would have recieved had someone been killed. Because every illegal street race has the potential to kill innocent people.
if they are caught the second or third time street racing there car should be crushed in front of them!
I agree that confiscation and crushing is not too heavy a sentence, but in addition there should be a hefty term in prison for these offenders.
I recognise that this is a speeding community, as I noticed during a three day visit to Canberra recently. I stayed within the speed limits and during those three days, was passed by every car on the road bar one. Many of those drivers were women, and some, male or female were quite aggressive about my travelling at the legal speed limit, whilst they had a need to pass me. I suppose I was keeping them from saving 15 or so seconds on there trip to wherever.
people always try to vindicate what they do as right.
But idiots who participate in actions like this deserve no rights.
This is also a very inconsiderate use of natural resources as well as polluting.
What escapes me is, there are people not only on “P” platers driving around in these performance and replica race cars, yet they forget to still learn one concept, there are other road users on sub-standard or unsafe roads & not on a race track or drag strip!
What also escapes me is where do they get the money for these vehicles, bikes included. Besides this, is the fact these vehicles can do more than double the highest speed limit (110 km/h) quite easily. Yet the old saying comes back “anyone can get a liscence, but not many actually know how to DRIVE a car properly,” then they think they are Skaife, Lowndes or Schummacher.
Problem is many people forget “What If,” when they lose control, you can immagine the consequences. Many people can hit the accelerator and go faster (than the other driver) in a straight line, but once they take a corner they’re pretty ordinary, little known of an undulated road, loose shoulder & add ‘RAIN’, then you can guess again, you “lost it” into a tree or some innocent family comming home from holidays, possibly fataly.
As for the previous parent about his son on the video game, this is ‘reality’ not a ‘game’ & yes, you are a ‘Parent’. Yes the majority of us all played video games but we realise after all, – it is a game, far different to feeling & controlling a vehicle. I am a ‘parent’ as well, this is up to ‘us parents’ to educate our ‘kids,’ on this & other ‘life changing’ factors.
Something to consider, with “P” platers driving around in high performance vehicles, like V8′s, Turbo’s, superchargers etc. How come motorbikes for learners (under 30) are limited to 250cc 4 stroke for decades, yet over 30 you can buy a 650cc bike due to “Power-to-weight ratio.” Why not for under 25′s, “L” or “P” plates have cars under 2 Litres normally aspirated petrol and under 3.5 Litre deisels? Sorry kids you dont go on a racetrack without knowing how to control the car, little known driving one & that’s on a 1 way circuit, with cars in the same direction!
All learners should first learn of driving school before learning of family & friends, for bad habbits are easy to pick up & harder to rectify.
Also, there should be more advanced driver courses easily available and affordable for younger (& some older) drivers, including 4WD under supervised instructions. More motorclubs at raceways should be easily accessible for people who want to have a go at racing under supervised instruction. Motor racing can be fun, but it still is dangerous.
One more thing, blinkers/indicators on new vehicles should be of amber or orange lenses without a clear (or smoked) lense, due to dificulty visualising in the sunlight. Lets face it some “passive” drivers think they can get away without using them altogether. Police should crack down on drivers not using blinkers/indicators & the dreaded “mobile phone” in hand useage, along with heavier fines. There are still people have them held to their ear, for long periods of time!
Then after all this, if some people want to break the law by illegal street racing, then those drivers can push the button to crush their own vehicle!
Now, lets look at boats & waterways….? Plenty of the same leadfoots there too! Something to consider!
Forfeiture and sale of vehicles involved at first offence plus the cost of prosecution. Automatic disqualification for 2 years, not subject to variation. Subsequent offences, forfeiture of vehicles, cost of prosecution and gaol for up to 5 years (summary jurisdiction) and for a third or subsequent offence, disqualification for life.
Pussy footing with these idiots is futile. Their actions are deliberate and the factor of mens rea is glaringly obvious.
Fines are a joke as are robocops (fixed cameras). They are OK for minor offences but more action needs to be taken on the licences of persistent recidivist offenders.
Driving motor vehicles is no longer a right but a privilege with heavy responsibilities to the public.
People will always keep modifying cars. Increasing punishment has not had any long term effect although it is promoted heavily by the politicians and police.
I see no evidence base for following this line at all. The cost to the community of locking up offenders is very costly to the community. Politicians never tell you what this cost to the community is, while schools, hospitals and public transport still miss out.
Why not provide a place for them to drag in safety off the streets in dedicated areas. Gets rid of their anger, and keeps us safe and lets them develop their talent to their hearts content.
Crushing of cars may seem like a fix but it could end up with the cars being used for street racing being stolen vehicles.
Being a P-plater myself, I’ve noticed that there are drivers (even full licensed ones) on the road that like to think that they’re all good and own the road as soon as they see my P plate on display. Those idiots think I know nothing but expect me to drive fast and unsafe, totally disregarding the law and others on the road. Just because I’m a P plater, it doesn’t mean that I want to race.
So a good way to combat illegal street racing is to have an undercover police displaying a P plate on their vehicle to catch anyone who thinks they’re cool around a P plater.
Anyone who doesn’t think street racing is a common occurence and a problem is kidding themselves. I can make a few phone calls tonight and find out where and when a race is on for the weekend. The only reason there haven’t been more casuallties is purely by chance.
What can you do to stop it? Nothing really. Organised ones like those my mates have you could possibly prevent by having more legal drags. But you aren’t gonna stop anyway from draggin someone at the lights.
I am curious … how many of you have ever seen a Street Race in progress? Does it depend on where you live?
The closest I have come is on the F3 … irresponsible hoons going VERY fast – almost collected us. His race partner was a hot Commodore. It had fancy lights and stickers all over it …. think they said ‘high way patrol’. I think he was catching up to the first car … he had a faster car!
Making newbie drivers have only loww cc cars sounds like a good idea – my sons 1.8 litre hyundi only does 170km/hr, not 220.
If retesting for us old foggies ever comes in, we should have the same rule applied – sell the Falcon, get a Prius!
“Something to consider, with “P” platers driving around in high performance vehicles, like V8’s, Turbo’s, superchargers etc.”
Ah… you do know that there have been restrictions on what cars P-Platers can buy and drive for about 2 years?
That said I saw a Red P-plater in a Nissan 200SX the other day which I am sure is turbo charged and banned.. Ho-hum.
Don’t be an idiot not all 200sx Nissan’s are turbocharged and they are a legal drive “no if’s or but’s”.
Confiscating the car of a hoon is probably the best way hurt them. Although crushing is appealing, I’d like to see the cars sold at auction, and the money given to approved charities (save a bit of waste and help somebody). In addition, licences should be immediately confiscated, on approval of a magistrate, not wait until a court hearing, many months from the offence.
“The couple were driving east on the Great Western Highway at St Marys in a red Toyota Camry about 7pm yesterday after having dinner at the Penrith Paceway. As they attempted a right hand turn onto Pages Road they were struck by two of three cars travelling west on the Great Western Highway. ”
I read this as they were travelling east then attempted a right hand turn right into the path of the “racers” who were travelling west on the same road. I am aware that the drivers might have been speeding but at the same time if you are turning right across a main road you have a responsability to make sure there is a safe gap in traffic.
The number of deaths each year from street racing is so low that it should not be wasting resources, if the government was serious then we would have more police on the streets especially after hours
legal outlets for drivers who like driving fast are few and far between, on the north shore where would the closest be? 2 hours away at wakefield, and the times that are available for legal racing isn’t outside of business hours when people feel the need to vent some steam behind the wheel after a bad day at work
as they say if you can’t drive fast with 80hp 800hp isn’t going to help, it works both ways the car is not a factor it’s the driver
crushing cars is a waste and selling them whole will just encourage others to buy them for the same purpose, they should be dismantled and sold as spare parts
should a quick spurt from the traffic lights to get ahead of traffic without going over the speed limit be counted as a street race? Should we all be overtaking trucks on the pacific highway between hornsby and the city only doing the speed limit? if so then it would never happen, the trucks travel at 60 on the straights so no overtaking there and then on the corners where they slow down to ~40 the overflow into other lanes
there needs to be more focus on driver education and police being active in the community and getting more involved in the “street racing” community by this I mean police should be attending local meets and cruises and meeting up with the drivers not just pulling them over when they are out for an innocent drive, until then there will be constant tension
For the record I have only been pulled over once in the 2 years of having my P plates and that was for an RBT, despite driving daily for at least an hour, most of this is at night and on the weekends when I go out to meet other people who share my passion of driving
Stay safe on the roads, we all break the rules sometimes you just might not be willing to admit it even if it’s just indicating too late or letting your car go 5km over the limit for a short period of time, the difference is the media doesn’t focus on you because thats normal, “racing” isn’t
I live in an area of Canberra recently classed as the worst are in the city for speeding, racing and in particular burnouts, one of my pet hates. Two things in my opinion need to happen if any impact is to be seen to reduce the above. One, there needs to be a wider Police presence on the streets, and a more positive reaction to the public when they ring and complain, and two, the public need to report any of the mentioned criminal activities, if they are annoyed by it. I do, and have helped remove 1/2 a dozen burnout vehicles from the road in the last 12 months, several of the drivers also had demerit points stripped of their licenses. Your ID remains private, and believe me, if just one driver loses a car or licence as a reult of his/her criminal activities, their friends too will hear about it, and besides its one less criminal on the roads.
THere are only two effective ways to get through to these irresponsible criminals -
* lock them up, or
* take their cars off them for 3, 6, 12 months or for good
These are the only things they understand – loss of freedom or loss of car or both
.
Also, the courts are so weak it’s a joke – a slap on the wrist for killing and maiming and they just go and do it again and again.
When will we ever learn!
maybe crushing cars is the best idea, maybe it isn’t. i know i would hate to see my ss commodore crushed. but it should be a last resort maybe for repeat offenders. the first thing that needs to be done is give people somewhere to race. i live in newcastle, im 25. since i was 17 people have been trying to get a drag strip built at a private property at raymond terrace but the council/government keeps knocking it on the head. i am in no way giving there people an excuse to race on the street, but if there is nowhere to do it…. its a 2 hr drive for me to go to a legal venue in sydney, otherwise i believe there is nothing from here to qld..
and as for p platers not being able to drive v8′s and turbo cars.. a new 6 cylinder commodore or falcon is just as fast as my v8 commodore so where is the logic in that??? it should be a power to weight figure, not just exclude v8 and turbo
Areas for ‘controlled’ legal street racing, is a great idea. Put them all in one place at one time, away from us!
Other than that, after illegal street racers get picked up on public roads, crush their cars, impose fines, give jail sentences, use wheel clamps, take away licences for 20 years, or whatever is appropriate.
However, prevention is better than cure. Everyone should have their IQs tested before going for a licence – too many people have IQs so low that you could step on them! Then send them to the morgue to show what happens after car accidents, and give statistics; get people to sign a declaration that they will pay for funeral costs if they kill someone or hospital expenses if they injure someone. That will prevent so many idiots from wanting/able to get their licences that there won’t even be peak hour anymore!
Someone has posted that the toll of deaths from street racing is very small compared to the road toll as a whole. Maybe, but its not just deaths that are a problem. Its also the destruction of amenity in often quiet suburban streets and secondary roads where those that live in them are constantly plagued by the sound of racing vehicles, and road surfaces get damaged and defaced by excessive acceleration/burnouts. As a Highway Patrol officer I know how many people complain of this sort of behaviour and how much of our time is spent trying to deter this. I’m also a resident of a generally quiet street, the peace of which is ruined by it being one street away from a set of lights on a busy road. The noise of hoons dragging each other off from the lights in very loud vehicles goes on 24/7 and permeates the surounding streets. I do enjoy going to Bathurst and watching the “great race” every year but I’m not particualrly happy about hearing a race start every 2 minutes or so day in day out at home.
I am reading and wondering do people here actually know what goes on?
do you know the current fines for street racing? DO you even know what the police currently do to prevent it?
For the first street racing offence you get the following
$1000 fine min
your car is impounded for 3 months and you pay the costs.
Second offence is the following
$1000 fine min.
potential goal term
you car is taken to auction with any money made going to the goverment.
So, crushing cars is not going to fix it cause you lose your car with the current laws.
Locking them up wont fix it cause you currently get that to.
So there is not one thing i have seen here that fix’s the problem.
Now there are police dedicated to street racing, not the type you seen in the paper of ‘hoons’ racing in populated areas. There the issue, the street racers are there but you never see them because there racing in inductrial areas at 2am. the police know this and some times only say “go race else where out of this area”
The problem is not a quick fix. Modifying cars is a love and hobbie, not all these people are street races or hoons so stoping this is unfair in that respect and you can race a stock car any way so that will not fix the proplem at all.
I think more safe enviroments is the only way to tackle the problem, and encrouge drivers to use them. The real street racing has died so much since WSID opened.
You need to TARGET the hoons that kill people not the enthusist or modifiers or car lovers. Hoons come in various ages and drive various cars so be fair and do blame the people who dont deserve it.
being a new p plater myself i do not agree with some of the laws or the comments that have been written on this page. think about it this way if you take a persons racing car away from them, they will just buy another one or borrow a friends, pritty obvious isn’t it? i also think that if there were venues made for people to go and rac their cars this would almost eliminate the racing done on the roads, because they would have a properly designed and constructed racing course to do so. i do not think it is a case of having too powerful cars for them to handle it’s a case of not having a properly designated course to do. if there was a venue at brisbane where people could go and race i am willing to bet that you would never see a skyline,wrx, or any other form of hotted up car on the street.
street racing should be allowed but only in controlled environments like caulder park, sand down and on streets with police patrolling the perimeter
I agree with all of the above. My cusin just got killed due to illegal street raising while riding his bicycle in the side walk on 01/01/2008, here in Orlando Florida. He was only 15 years old he did not have to die if serious actions would have been taken when this driver hit another child 2 years ago. In the memory of my cusin Luis Rivera Ortega and all of those that have died due to illegal street rasing, Our family will be holding a Ralley against illegal street raising on 02/01/2008 at 6:30 pm in the crime seen in Forsyth Rd. TOGETHER WE ALL CAN MAKE THE CHANGE!!!
I am going to post an unpopular veiw but its mine and there is nothing foing to change it. I hate street raceing, it reflects back on those of us with modified cars who don’t do it, but worse its reflected back from the majority of street racers who drive holdens and fords as well as your standard ricer skyline and lancers. These people want to race let them on a track. Now in queensland we have 3 tracks all out in the middle of nowhere and cost too much but those of us who go out there regularly are also hounded by the cops regularly as we leave and quite often for doing nothing wrong other then leaving an event where we have been driving at high speed. Now that is insulting to alot of us but what is more insulting is when you have police driving around in their own hotted up cars trying to initiate races themselfs to bust someone, all under the guise of the goody too shoes among you wanting street racing to stop. I have no problem taking the fine if i do the crime but that sort of action has a name, its called entrapment. Ohh and a warning anyone ever tries taking my car that i spent my money on i will be taking each and every person in my state to court by sueing the police and the queensland goverment under the idea that they stole my car., they have no right to take something i have paid for. I pay for my rego which therefore entitles my car to be ont he road they want my car off teh road they cancel my rego and make it so i can’t get it back on that car but taking something to which you have no ownership is STEALING.
I am on a full licence and agree that people who race OVER a SPEED LIMIT are wrong.
but what about me ? the light goes green i accelerate and beat the car next to me to the speed limit. Will a cop crush my car ??? i am racing to the speed limit.
But that is what my car was designed to do, stock standard v8 or a 4 cylinder….If i let the wheels spin off traffic lights or speed then yes book me…
But dont pull me over, Waste my time and say you will crush my car for not speeding. I always give a lecture about how racing to the speed limit is ok but not over it.
Most of these comments above seem to come from your 60 + age group that only drive to the post office.
Its a hobby, we do need more affordable regular track days to “race” our cars
Im a 17 year old P-plater from Queensland and i have so many restrictions on me im amazed i can turn the car on! Seriously people, most of you sound like you raced dinosaurs back in your teens. I LOVE cars, cant help getting dirty under the bonnet of my ute. and I LOVE drifting, sliding a car out seems so crazy, but the adrenaline rush of controlling your car when inexperienced drivers would be spinning while screaming out the top of their lungs is great.
I have a playstation, i play games in arcades. But from my experience reality and virtuality are nothing alike. I got overtaken by a 70 year old granny doing 110 driving into brissy, and i laughed at her hunched over the wheel like a demon lookin for a fight.
I’ve been out to ipswich raceway, the hairpin. and it cost me close to 100 bucjs to put my car on the track! $20 to just stand and watch. And you wonder why kids street race, cause the prices are frickin ridiculous. it would cost me nothing to go to my local industrial estate and spin my wheels, except for new tyres. Some of my peers say its the thrill of possibly getting chased by cops that drives them to race on the streets. but do you, honestly, see cops trying to prevent the situation, other then taking away their ride and joy. when i was 10 i used to just go out and wash and wax my mums car, cause i liked it. id vacuum inside and empty all the rubbish. cause it deserved respect.
Now im not saying street racing is great, ive raced off the lights, to the limit mind you. You do get a rush, but crushing a car is not the answer. my friend wrote off his car, his a builder so wit his next few paychecks he had a 2nd hand holden ss ute, better then his 1st one. give people a place to go, reasonable times and prices. send some pro racers out in front, dont taunt them and i garantee you will only see a hotted up import or big block when their on their way to the track!
Take their cars off them, crush them and drop the remains in their front yards. As for the idiots that street race, ban them for life from driving.
Too easy.
A large fine as well will give them something to think about as well.
confiscated the cars. but however if drag strips were for free wouldnt you think people would use them
my son was killed by a 19 year old who was street racing. My son was going the opposite direction, doing the speed limit minding his own business 4 days before Christmas 2007. He left behind a 2 year old little girl. The kid was doing 100mph lost control flipped went airborn and landed upside down right on my son he never knew what hit him. My son was “impaired” so he would have gone home slept it off and still be alive, but we are being sued figure that out!!!!!!!!!!!!
i dont agree with teh crushign the cars
that would make me really upset and just
go back to the samethign again i might be
upset and down for the meanwhile but its like
a drug once u deep in there its hard for you to get out
lets say its like smoking cigaretts fo those who smoke
or like drinking when u an alcoholic so for those who havent actually been thru it they dont know the feeling.
what they should do instead is 1 day of the week close down a main street with police and let us street race for just one day atleast until 2am i said it…
and am working on an essay and this will be argument on it and topic.
I agree with needing more venues, the government has held back a proposal for a track out in the Jilliby area this is located right next to the free way. This would allow us to actually go ahead and race 3, 4 or 5 of our friends at once in safe controlled environment. The problem with Wicked Wednesdays at Western Sydney International Drag ways, it’s in Sydney and difficult to get there It also has a huge amount of reputation and a hell of a lot of cars go in the event meaning a lot more people miss out this leads them to illegal street racing to test there cars.
This is why i believe we need more controlled places or allow people to have private venues on there property but the dam stupid laws prohibit them.
This is off the topic a bit but relates in a way:
Also it’s really not fair that Red P’s are only allowed 1 passenger in the car, I can see the point that yes less people in the car at night means less people will get hurt in the short term but in the long run it’s hurting just as much. I have seen a situation where I was designated driver for a friend and 3 other people were left at a party with there cars, Personally I didn’t know them but I offered them a lift risking my license to stop 3 people from potentially killing them selves or others
I have just recently got my P plates an the real problem is that all my mates want to race on a closed circuit, but the problem is the fact that there are not enough drag strips and race tracks to go to to make it safe to race which menas where are they going to go…………….. you guessed it race on the streets
Now as i have just bought a 2010 Mitshibishi VRX Lancer. my mates are always up me to forge the pistons, put a exhaust on it etc. but i have the sense to say NO. But many people of my age don’t have the will power to say no to peer pressure. and that causes the problems. and i will be honest. if there were more race tracks then i would not hessitate going to the race track with my friends and fighting it out
On a Safe, Control Envoirment.
Now as The VRX Lancers Produce 125kw’s of power that is still a lot of power.
Also i have a comment to make about the licensing system.
I feel that (i live in Queensland) the hazzard test sSHOULD BE DONE EVEN BEFORE YOU GET YOUR P1. what is the sense in doing that test after you have been on the road for a year or more. and by not doing this test first up it menas that every P1 driver may not be to stardard to be on the road.
Thanks for letting me have my say
Regards Gordo from Queensland
I have seen people racing on the highways, i havent seen a problem with it usually it is late a night so there are nearly no cars on the road they slow down below the speed limit and race for a few hundred metres and given that its on the highway there is plenty of room to slow down and no one is going to pull out in front of you from a side street. The problem is when people race in built up areas Plain and simple.
I cannot believe some of the attitudes that are being broadcast on here. “Crush their cars”, “give them million dollar fines”, “send them to a concentration camp”. I do wonder where this country is leading. Fascism is obviously not far away. The fact that it looks as though Tony Abbott’s about to form government says it all.
I love illegal street racing racing it is awesome. Racing on the track on the street anywhere is perfect. In a perfect world every town would have a place for us to have fun and do our thing. But they don’t so we work with what we have.