THE coverage of the never-ending carnage on our roads fills me with despair. We all know that speed is the dominant factor in most fatal road crashes, and male drivers comprise the majority of drivers (not necessarily victims, but perpetrators) in these cases.

We only need to look through last year's editions of the Evening Press to see a picture of the kinds of vehicles used, too. "GTi, Cosworth, VTR, high-powered motorcycle" - all descriptions which appear in the reports and pictures.

I despair not at the statistics, however, but at the fact that we have an unused solution. The technology exists to put a stop to speeding for good.

Here is a brief resume of utopia. All vehicles are required by law to be fitted with 'The Device'. This is a Global Positioning System-controlled road speed limiter. When the vehicle is running, the GPS determines each road's speed limit via its internal database of highways. As the vehicle passes from zone to zone, its speed is automatically limited to the new zone's speed.

The GPS would also prevent tailgating, and all stolen vehicles, or those used in crimes, can be 'killed' instantly by a police over-ride.

The system would take about a year to implement, and cost a bomb, but the 'boy-racer' culture, and the machismo centred around dangerous driving would be ended overnight. UK Plc could recoup much of the cost by selling the system abroad, and there would be massive savings for the NHS.

Want a simpler solution? We could try a testosterone suppressant in the water!

Andy Scaife,

Lowther Terrace,

York.

Updated: 10:51 Thursday, July 31, 2003