Speeding.

You do it. I do it. Everyone does it at some point in their life, if not every day.

It's illegal.

But that's not the problem because some people can handle themselves well on the road. The problem is people are still hell bent on risking their lives to get nowhere fast.

What's the solution? We're still trying to figure that out. But in the meantime, the men and women of the Roads Policing Unit have to face the gruesome realities of it every day.

Recently The Royal Gazette visited the crew up at their Prospect location to get an idea of the effect this sometimes seemingly innocuous crime has on our community.

At the cycle impound lot, every bike has a story — many of them are recovered stolen property, stripped of their valuable parts.

"This one is from the last fatality," Inspector Mark Bothello says, pointing to a big blue cycle with surprisingly little damage.

But surveying the mass of crumpled front ends and split fenders, the impound lot is a like a cycle graveyard — and it's a sad sight to behold.

Seeing the cycles in such terrible shape makes it hard to imagine anyone being able to survive a blow with a bus or tractor-trailer. And as we know, many don't.

Brenda Johnson, the traffic reports officer, found she had a need to know what the victims look like: "I wanted to have a face to go with the accident."

That's why, on the white board beside her desk, she began to keep a pictorial list of those victims who were killed each year on the road.

"It's not something to joke about, but every time there's a new accident we bring a picture in here, another one for the list," Insp. Bothello says grimly.

It's hard to find the words to say in the face of such tragedy, the empty eyes of newspaper images staring back from often innocently young faces — so much life, so much promise.

"It's sad," he adds, turning to leave.

Where are we learning this behaviour? Insp. Bothello believes it's a cultural issue.

"You get your bike when you're 16. That's all you wanted was your bike. Me too," he says. "It's a culture thing, but it crosses all boundaries. It crosses all age groups, ethnic backgrounds, everything. It's phenomenal. And every vehicle — from HC trucks right down to Yamaha V 50s. It doesn't know any particular colour, age group; it just crosses all the barriers."

In order to even sit on one of those big bikes, regardless if they've been riding for the better part of their lives, police officers are required to pass through a series of rigorous training classes pumping them full of information and techniques on how to handle our uniquely dangerous road conditions with agility and speed.

As a 16-year-old, all one needs to do to get a licence is to pass a written exam and be able to balance on a cycle while doing a few turns and simple manoeuvres.

Something seems wrong with this picture.

"I see it so much when I'm working that it bothers me, but when it really bothers me is when I'm off duty, driving with my family or whatever and people are just flying by in ridiculous positions on bends, over taking and stuff like that and I just shake my head," he admits. "But we can't be everywhere at once. It's a big problem in society. We have to be held accountable. A driver's license is a privilege and we have to obey the rules of the road."

Speaking of the rules, although it may seem like it's acceptable to do 45km/hr., many of us don't realise that doing anything over 35 km/hr. is breaking the law.

"Speeding is a problem here on the Island due to the road conditions and the amount of vehicles on the roads now," he explains. "The average speed now is in the high 50s, easy."

Thanks to the introduction of service issued lasers to the East and West End divisions, the police force has been able to make more of a showing on the roads, and the numbers, Insp. Bothello says, are phenomenal: "We're seeing some tremendous speeds — 80s, 90s."

But he's hoping the new points system, which is making its way through the Government bureaucracy, will make a difference.

"Like in Canada or the US, you have these points and if you lose them you're automatically taken off the road," he explains. "A driver's licence is important for transportation to and from work, school, etc. Maybe if they realise I'm going to lose this they'll slow down.

"I think people are very materialistic," he muses. "They're willing to pay the fines and keep their car."

As we leave with the image of twisted metal and the haunting faces of those lives lost on our roads, Insp. Bothello calls out, "No speeding!"

But is anyone really listening?