MR Allan Ramsey has not understood the object of the transport secretary's variable punishment system at all.

His letter suggests that he is not a motorist, but one of the pedestrians who believe that all traffic should scream to a halt at the sight of a child on the pavement.

He quotes "chill-out, slow-down" and then goes on to insult every motorist by suggesting that they have "the freedom to kill innocent children".

Is Mr Ramsey not aware that the majority of motorists have children of their own? There was once a slogan, "Watch That Child" that was directed at motorists, but should have been directed at parents instead.

When I was a child in the mid-30s, it was a rule, followed scrupulously by parents and children, that no child under the age of seven/eight should be on a road, much less cross it, without being accompanied by a parent or older child who held his/her hand very firmly.

The traffic in those days, the fastest of which being the farmer returning for fresh supplies of milk at a very respectable canter, was in the region of one motorised vehicle (Morgan three-wheeler, Austin (baby) seven, etc) every five minutes or so on a busy day.

Contrast that with today's traffic, where motorists are able to buy vehicles capable of speeds in excess of 100mph, and the idea that a child should be free to travel unsupervised on the road is quite ludicrous.

The speed limit law that says that in a "built-up area" with street lighting the limit is 30mph - this is totally out-dated. Today the street lights are almost universally standard on all roads, and with the "ribbon development" between towns, the line between built-up and open road is too blurred to be a true guide. The 30mph speed limit must be better signposted, and even painted on the road surface itself to ensure that we are all aware of it.

F Isherwood

Latham Road

Blackrod