I am writing in response to Mr Blake’s letter printed [in BFP July 11] regarding the newsletter published by Chepping Wycombe Parish Council.

Firstly, I would like to state that most parish councils are non-political organisations and at Chepping Wycombe we all work together as one team to serve our local community.

The MVAS [mobile vehicle-activated sign] is a joint initiative with the Hazlemere and Chepping Wycombe Neighbourhood Action Group and was in response to the many complaints received from residents about speeding in our villages. It is an educational tool, used to warn drivers who drive in excess of the speed limit.

While it is generally recognised that there will always be those who will exceed the speed limit, it is also appreciated that many drivers unintentionally do so because most modern cars give no sense of speed. A reminder is often enough for them to realise that they are going too fast and to slow down. We have seen evidence to support this view and thus the MVAS has proved worthwhile for that alone.

However, returning to those that ignore the speed limit, the police have limited speed enforcement facilities and need to target those roads where speeding is a major issue and where there is good evidence to show this. The MVAS collects data which allows us to provide that evidence. It also gives an indication of the volume of traffic moving around the area which is also useful to the council.

The MVAS is being placed in areas where residents advised that speeding was most prevalent. It has been set to show at 30mph+, with a three per cent margin to remind drivers of the speed limit. It does not show the actual speed of the vehicle so there is no way that drivers could challenge one another to reach higher speeds.

It takes approximately 15 minutes to download the data from the MVAS (hence the parking near the sign), this is then passed to the working group which includes members of the police force. They analyse the data and the results are used by the police to schedule speed operations at the optimum time and places for speeding.

So, despite what people may think, the MVAS is not an expensive toy but a vital tool in assisting the police in trying to reduce the speed of traffic on our roads.

With regard to the newsletter, this costs Chepping Wycombe Parish Council 27p per issue to produce and deliver twice a year and most of our deliverers are volunteers. We know that it is a resource that many residents appreciate as we get a lot of feedback on it, especially from people asking where it is if it is late!

We feel it is funds worth spending to advise people of what we are doing. Whilst we are aware that many people have internet access, there are still many that don’t and are unable to use a computer. Would you really be prepared to go to a library to see if a new newsletter has been uploaded for the parish council?

I am sure that many people would not, but they will read a booklet that drops through their letterbox to find out what is going on in their local area. — Katrina Wood, Chairman, Chepping Wycombe Parish Council