The incidence of illegal street racing has decreased by 65 percent in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong province, since the police launched a special operation to crack down on illegal racing and illegal modifications of vehicles in 2022, according to a statement recently released by Guangdong Provincial Public Security Department.
2,416 suspects involved in illegal street races were arrested, while 17 shops engaged in illegal modifications of vehicles received administrative penalties, and 1,675 vehicles were impounded, said the statement.
According to Shenzhen police, some of the cases of illegal street racing were reported to police by residents.
On September 8, 2022, two drivers surnamed Pan and Chen were seen speeding along the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Expressway and going faster than 160km/h in a 120km/h zone during evening rush hour.
“The two drivers did not know each other at all. They saw each other driving a high-performance car and decided to race,” the police said. “They were found straddling solid white lines, weaving through traffic, completely ignoring road markings and disregarding the safety of other road users.”
A resident reported the case to the police online through the official account of Shenzhen Traffic Police Bureau. After investigation, the two drivers were detained on suspicion of dangerous driving.
On October 9, 2022 at 2:00 AM, Shenzhen police arrested a driver surnamed Yang and seized his car, after receiving a report from the public that a green sports car was racing nearby their neighborhood and emitting loud noise.
“The noise the car made was above 97 decibels, way much higher than the environmental noise standards,” the police said. The environmental noise standards adopted in Chinese mainland are 40-55 decibels during nighttime in urban areas.
Yang was held under administrative detention for five days due to disturbing public order. In addition, the seized vehicle involved illegal modifications of different parts such as exterior and rear wing.
A few days later, Shenzhen police impounded another two vehicles for illegal street racing and modifications. Through investigation, the police located the shop offering illegal modifications to all the three vehicles, and issued administrative penalty to the owner.
The statement stressed that irresponsible driving endangered the safety of other road users and was often the main cause of serious traffic accidents.
Shenzhen police would continue to take action against dangerous drivers, carry out regular checks for online illegal racing videos, increase patrols in known hotspots, and supervise related companies and shops that have taken part in illegal vehicle modifications before.
Author | Lydia Liu
Video | Zoey
Editor | Wing, Steven, Abby, Jerry
