 
|
ROAD
SAFETY NEWS - WEEK COMMENCING 4 AUGUST
|
DfT announces
£2m to improve child road safety skills
Children in deprived areas will benefit from £2.2m of new
funding, earmarked for training volunteers who will teach road
safety skills in schools, the DfT announced last week. 24 local
authorities are each being offered £90,000 over three years
to fund the new road safety initiative.
Children in deprived communities are five times more likely to
be killed while out walking than children from better-off areas.
Five to seven year olds in schools in 24 local authorities will
get practical training to improve their every day road safety
skills.
"It is vital to teach young children practical skills in
crossing the road at an early stage, skills which they will take
with them throughout their life," said transport minister
David Jamieson. "Through this funding children
will be taught how to find safe places to cross the road; how
to cross safely between parked cars and how to cross safely near
junctions.
"We also know that children in less well off areas are five
times more likely to be killed in a pedestrian accident than children
from better-off families. We need to target these children and
concentrate on areas that we know have a particular local casualty
problem."
The funding allocation is the final phase of a five year research
project that began in England in 2001. Similar projects are currently
being pursued in Scotland and Wales. The DfT received bids from
57 local authorities to fund 68 schemes. Of these, 26 schemes
have been accepted.
To see the schemes that have been accepted, go to: http://www.dft.gov.uk/pns/Display
|
World
Health Day 2004 takes road safety theme
World Health Day is celebrated annually on 7 April and the theme
for World Health Day 2004 is road safety. On this day around the
globe, hundreds of organisations will host events to help raise
awareness about road traffic injuries, their grave consequences
and the enormous cost to society. These events will also contribute
to spreading the word that such injuries can be prevented.
To read more about World Health Day go to: http://www.who.int/world-health-day/2004/en/ |
Statistics
show big rise in motorcycle use
Road Traffic Statistics for Great Britain: 2002, published last
week by the DfT, shows that estimated traffic levels rose by 2.6
per cent between 2001 and 2002, with the biggest increase being
in the use of motorbikes. The overall figure partly reflects the
impact of the Foot and Mouth outbreak on traffic in 2001. The underlying
rate of growth is estimated to be between one and two per cent per
year.
The statistical bulletin provides detailed analyses of road traffic
estimates by vehicle type, road class and geographic area. The key
points show that between 2001 and 2002 car traffic levels rose by
2.6 per cent, goods vehicle traffic rose by 0.9 per cent and motorcycle
traffic by 5.5 per cent.
The bulletin is available for viewing at www.dft.gov.uk/transtat/ |
Old
roads take young lives, expert claims
Britain’s ageing inner city housing stock, which provides accommodation
for poorer families, is a key reason why children in the lowest
social class are five times more likely to be killed as pedestrians
compared with their better off counterparts.
Dr. Nicola Christie from the University of Surrey
Postgraduate Medical School makes this claim in an article published
by The Guild of Experienced Motorists (GEM) on the safety information
section of its website.
Dr Christie says that the death toll of deprived children has much
to do with the type of environment in which they live. "Look
at any street map in the UK and you will notice that the older inner
cities and most urban areas built before the 1960s have a grid-like
road network," she says. "Older residential areas often
have long straight roads that meet at right angles, encouraging
motorists to drive at inappropriate speeds. Modern estates have
a capillary of cul-de-sacs that are self calming and safer.
"Mature estates and road networks were built before the advent
of mass car ownership," Dr Christie explains. "So there
is also the hazard of on-street parking.
"Children from deprived families are more exposed to risk as
they may not have access to a car and spend more time walking because
public transport is not available or reliable. They are also more
likely to play or hang out in the streets. Many children are injured
in traffic accidents when they are using the street for recreation
– because it is often the only place to play."
She points out that research has shown that the majority of child
pedestrians are not injured on the school journey, but afterwards
when they have returned to the streets.
"Some lateral thinking is needed," she says. "Local
authorities may need to provide more widespread and cheaper facilities
and play schemes combined with accessible transport. The benefits
could be wider than road safety with children less likely to be
exposed to the risks associated with street life."
The full version of Dr Christie’s article can be found at:
http://www.roadsafety.org.uk/gem.html |
DfT
ends workplace travel plan fund
Local authorities in England will have to find internal funds if
they wish to retain their workplace travel plan officers in post
(Local Transport Today, 24 July). This follows the DfT’s confirmation
that there will be no extension to the original three-year bursary
scheme for the co-ordinators, which is due to end 31 March 2004.
There was better news for school travel plan bursary posts, with
the department indicating that funding for these may be extended.
In 2001 the DfT announced a £9m programme to fund 111 school
and workplace travel plan co-ordinators with local authorities and
PTEs over a three-year period. The bursaries were paid to 84 councils,
with some receiving funds for more than one post. Some posts covered
purely one type of travel plan while others have covered both schools
and workplaces. |
Review
of road traffic offences gets underway
John Halliday has been appointed to lead the review
of road traffic offences for bad driving, which will look at ways
of updating the law on serious driving offences, particularly where
death or injury results.
The review team, which met for the second time last week, will study
all levels of bad driving and develop new proposals for the prosecution
and punishment for this type of crime.
"The impact of serious bad driving is often underestimated,"
Home Office minister Baroness Scotland said. "This
kind of crime can be devastating for victims and their families
and a significant threat to the security and general well being
of our communities. It is vital that the criminal justice system
reflects the needs of the victims of these crimes as much as it
provides for the trial and sentencing of offenders.
"I am confident that the review will formulate thorough, sensible
and, if necessary, radical proposals for change in this crucially
important area." |
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
|
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
