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Young
Driver & Company Car Driver Campaign launched! No Excuses – Safety
First
MERSEYSIDE Road Safety Camera Partnership, which aims to reduce the
number of deaths and injuries on our roads’, is launching a campaign
to target two of the most vulnerable groups - young drivers and
company car drivers / professionals. The hard hitting campaigns will
appear on billboards and bus backs throughout Merseyside from 31
October; plus the team will be handing out leaflets, ice scrapers
and pens at road shows across Merseyside. A radio campaign aimed at
both groups will also be aired from 31 October; these adverts will
play on the boy racer attitude of young drivers and target company
car drivers who are often competing against the clock.
There were 62 deaths on Merseyside last year and 709 serious
casualties; too many people are still being injured and killed on
our roads. Everybody has a responsibility to drive safely and within
the speed limit!
David Foulkes, Project Manager for the Partnership states:-
“Through these images we are encouraging people to think about their
driving habits. Speeding is a criminal offence; there are no excuses
for speeding; the consequences can be horrific. The message is don’t
just slow down for the safety cameras’.
Road safety cameras are a proven method for reducing casualties. A
comprehensive evaluation report was published in June 2004. This
independent report evaluated the first three years of the Safety
Camera Scheme and covered the longest running 24 partnerships. It
showed:
Effect on casualties at camera sites, beyond the long-term downward
trend:-
There was a 40% reduction in the number of people killed or
seriously injured (KSI)
There were 870 fewer KSIs per year, including over 100 fewer deaths
There was a 33% fall in injury accident – 4,030 fewer per year
There was a 35% reduction in pedestrian KSIs
Effect on speed
Average speeds at fixed sites fell by around 7% or 2.4mph
Average speed at urban sites fell by around 15%
The number of vehicles speeding at new camera sites dropped by 71%
Other findings
79% of people asked; support the use of cameras to reduce casualties
The benefit to society through casualties saved was about £221
million per year.
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'Firework' flares are still a risk
A FRESH appeal is being made to the public not to use emergency
flares as substitute fireworks during this year for celebrations.
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution and the Maritime and
Coastguard Agency say that, despite a decline in the number of false
alarms caused by flares last year, too many lives are still put at
risk every time lifeboat and helicopter crews are called out, to
what they assume to be a genuine cry for help.
While 2004 saw a significant drop in this type of call out, the last
five years have seen a total of 180 incidents caused by revellers
misusing distress flares to light up the night sky. Last year's
celebrations still saw 25 false alarms, although the figure was down
from 35 in 2003.
RNLI Staff Officer Operations, Hugh Fogarty, says:- "We're
obviously very glad that our message has started to get through, but
are still very concerned about this problem. We want to emphasise
that when a flare goes up it is universally recognised as a distress
signal, so it's no surprise to find concerned members of the public
dialling 999 when they see one and they should continue to do so.
Our volunteers, along with other search and rescue crews tasked by
the Coastguard, are always ready to answer the call, but it is
frustrating for them to search through the night because a flare has
been fired for the wrong reasons. Not only are they called away from
their own family parties on Guy Fawke's Night and other nights like
New Years Eve, but they are also risking their lives each time they
put to sea, needlessly searching in often very dangerous
conditions."
MCA Head of Search and Rescue, Peter Dymond, says:- "Often
people are tempted to use up their out of date flares on Bonfire
Night, but this causes real problems for the rescue services. We
would urge sailors to dispose of flares safely and responsibly by
contacting their nearest Coastguard station. Out of date flares
should be replaced straight away as they are an essential part of
every sailor's kit and are meant to help save lives, not endanger
them."
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