Op Snap Receives Record 6,000 Submissions in 2023, Highlighting Public’s Role in Road Safety

Devon & Cornwall Police have witnessed a significant surge in public participation in road safety, with over 6,000 videos submitted through Op Snap in 2023. This marks the operation’s busiest year since its inception in 2019. Op Snap, an initiative that allows the public to submit video evidence of driving offences, has seen a remarkable increase in contributions, indicating heightened community engagement in policing.

The operation accepts footage from various sources, including dashcams, helmet cameras, mobile phones, and even video doorbells. This flexibility has enabled members of the public to capture a wide array of offences, contributing significantly to road safety efforts. Since 2019, nearly 10,000 motorists have been actioned against, thanks to these vigilant community efforts.

In an effort to raise awareness, Vision Zero South West, a road safety partnership, has released a selection of video clips. These clips showcase a variety of offences, ranging from dangerous overtaking and near misses to insufficient space for cyclists and mobile phone usage while driving. The videos cover incidents on diverse road types, from busy dual carriageways and A-roads to city centres and rural routes.

Adrian Leisk, Head of Road Safety for Devon & Cornwall Police and chair of Vision Zero South West’s enforcement group, emphasised the growing impact of Op Snap. He noted the increasing use of dashcams and helmet cameras and the public’s awareness of their power to address poor driving. Leisk expressed gratitude for the public’s support in tackling road safety concerns, underscoring the vastness of the road network and the impossibility of police omnipresence.

The partnership’s goal, as part of Vision Zero South West, is ambitious: to halve serious and fatal injuries by 2030 and eventually eliminate them. This goal is set against the backdrop of 2022 statistics, which reported 47 deaths and 741 serious injuries on Devon and Cornwall’s roads.

Alison Hernandez, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, and chairman of Vision Zero South West, highlighted the personal tragedies behind each statistic. She reiterated the partnership’s commitment to reducing road traffic deaths to zero, acknowledging the challenge but emphasising its necessity.

The shared commitment of Vision Zero South West involves various organisations, including councils, emergency services, NHS trusts, and road safety groups. Their united effort focuses on a zero-tolerance approach to deaths and serious injuries in the region.

For more information about Op Snap and the Vision Zero initiative, the public is encouraged to visit their respective websites.