An increase in the number of vulnerable road users being killed on Britain’s roads shows a need for a renewed push for safety, according to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).
Figures released today (Thursday, September 28) show that 1,792 people were killed in 2016 – the highest number of deaths since 2011. Many of these involved vulnerable road users, with pedestrian deaths up by 10 per cent to 448, compared to 2015, and cyclist deaths up by two per cent to 102.
Worryingly, the number of children killed is also up by 28 per cent from 2015, with 69 under-15s dying in 2016. Of all child road casualties (15,976), 38 per cent were pedestrians, and nearly a quarter (22 per cent) were killed or injured during the afternoon school run, between the hours of 3 5pm.
Residents in Milford Haven have done their bit to help with a Dyfed-Powys Police road safety operation.
More than 300 speeders were caught in a 24-hour campaign last week, held to mark the second annual TISPOL Project Edward – European Day Without a Road Death.
A total of 332 cases of excessive speed were among the offences identified by GoSafe, Dyfed-Powys Police and Community Speed Watch schemes across Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Powys during Project Edward on Thursday, September 21.
Latest figures show that in the last three years in Wales, 9 pedestrians have been killed and 62 seriously injured when they were affected by alcohol.
Through its social media activity, RoSPA Wales is helping to raise awareness of the risks of walking while impaired by alcohol. RoSPA’s partners in Road Safety Wales and other organisations including colleges, universities, community groups and the voluntary sector are invited to share the messages and help to draw attention to this important road safety concern.
Michelle Harrington, RoSPA’s Road Safety Manager for Wales said: “In addition to highlighting the extra risk faced when walking when impaired by alcohol, we will be reminding other road users that not all pedestrians are able to behave predictably, or in accordance with the rules of the Highway Code.
Police forces across Wales have launched a dedicated campaign to target drivers who use their mobile phone behind the wheel.
Using a mobile whilst operating a vehicle causes distraction, potentially resulting in serious injury or death. Tackling this issue is a priority across Wales.
The four Welsh police forces supported by GoSafe, the Safety Camera Partnership, will undertake activity led by South Wales Police to educate and prevent drivers putting themselves and other road users at risk.
A road safety calendar designed mainly for use in schools has been produced by Road Safety Wales at the request of several Local Authorities.
Pat Bates, Road Safety Strategy Officer at Torfaen County Borough Council, said: “I think the road safety calendar is a great idea. We send the printed academic year calendar to every primary school in the borough, plus our own councillors as many are also school governors, to local politicians and other key partners including some in the health sector.
We follow this up each month with a PDF of the month in question, each of which has its own theme, to deliver a monthly road safety prompt to all those who received the printed calendar and also to a wider audience. We find that this simple scheme engenders a lot of goodwill towards road safety for little financial outlay.
Today (Thursday 21 September), countries across Europe are supporting Project EDWARD - European Day Without A Road Death. Devised by the European Traffic Police Network (TISPOL), the initiative, now in its second year, seeks to draw attention to the average of 70 deaths occurring every day on the roads of Europe.
With small actions leading to big improvements, Project EDWARD seeks to remind everyone that there is a great deal of hard work being undertaken across Europe to achieve 2020 casualty reduction goals – and more.
Susan Storch, Chair of Road Safety Wales, said: “On 21 September, and every day, our aspiration is zero road fatalities. Through Project EDWARD our partners will help to raise awareness of this ambitious goal and will encourage road users to think more carefully about the way they drive, ride, or cross the road.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service has been hailed as World and UK extrication champions.
The world beating team of six took on the UK Fire and Rescue Services to retain the national title for the second year in a row.
Just one week after being named as World Champions in Romania, South Wales Fire and Rescue Service’s team of six from Bridgend have also retained their national champion title after competing at the United Kingdom National Rescue Challenge in Hull. This double success in consecutive years has never been achieved by any team before.
North Wales Police are reminding motorcyclists to take security measures to reduce the risk of their vehicle being stolen.
There are a number of ways that you can help to make the theft of your vehilce more difficult, or recovery of it easier.
Have an approved electronic immobiliser professionally fitted.
If you have a security device fitted, always use it. A wide variety of locks can be used, such as chains or padlocks, disc locks and D locks.
Secure your motorbike to a solid object that can’t be moved.
Always put a steering lock on.
When not in use, put it in a garage or secure outbuilding with a fixed or ground anchor. Fit a good lock and an alarm system to your garage or outbuilding.
Don’t leave your garage open and make sure your vehicle is covered, even when you are at home. Some motorbikes and scooters are stolen to order, so a motorbike spotted by a thief could be stolen later.
Mark your motorbike with its vehicle identification number (VIN).
Think about where you park your bike; use a parking space built specifically for motorbikes or scooters. They will have stands or security loops.
A virtual reality app is being developed at the University of South Wales (USW) to help teach road safety to primary school children.
USW academic Dr Catherine Purcell (Psychology), an expert in the link between perception and action at the roadside, is leading the project alongside co-investigator Dr Mike Reddy (Computing), a games design expert, after they were awarded funding from the Road Safety Trust (RST).
The funding is being used to develop a virtual reality game-based road safety education app, which will be tested for ‘proof-of-concept’ in Welsh primary schools.
An increase in the number of vulnerable road users being killed on Britain’s roads shows a need for a renewed push for safety, according to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).
Residents in Milford Haven have done their bit to help with a Dyfed-Powys Police road safety operation.
Latest figures show that in the last three years in Wales, 9 pedestrians have been killed and 62 seriously injured when they were affected by alcohol.
Police forces across Wales have launched a dedicated campaign to target drivers who use their mobile phone behind the wheel.
A road safety calendar designed mainly for use in schools has been produced by Road Safety Wales at the request of several Local Authorities.
Today (Thursday 21 September), countries across Europe are supporting Project EDWARD - European Day Without A Road Death. Devised by the European Traffic Police Network (TISPOL), the initiative, now in its second year, seeks to draw attention to the average of 70 deaths occurring every day on the roads of Europe.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service has been hailed as World and UK extrication champions.
North Wales Police are reminding motorcyclists to take security measures to reduce the risk of their vehicle being stolen.
A virtual reality app is being developed at the University of South Wales (USW) to help teach road safety to primary school children.