‘Rickshaws for revellers’ earns Prince Michael award for Liverpool

Fred Pye, Liverpool City Council’s principal road safety officer, was recently presented with the Prince Michael International Road Safety Award (Highly Commended) for the council’s road safety work - and in particular the ‘Alternatives’ campaign that ran over the 2002 festive period.

Under Alternatives, club-goers in Liverpool were offered a rickshaw ride to ensure they had a safe Christmas. The pedal - propelled rickshaws were hired by the City Council for a number of nights in the run-up to Christmas 2002 as part of a campaign to persuade people not to drink and drive.

The rickshaws transported people free from the city’s club land area to the city centre where a number of ‘alternative’ transport options were available. These included bus services to outlying districts on Friday and Saturday nights, a 24 hour taxi service in all parts of the region, and ‘Skoop’, a new home drive service in which a driver turns up on a moped that folds into the boot of a car. The Skoop driver then drives the car owner home in his or her own vehicle.

"With these alternative forms of transport there was no excuse for anybody to drink and drive, " said Councillor Flo Clucas, executive member for the environment. "Our campaign backed up the national effort which was based around the slogan, What will it Take to Stop you Drinking and Driving?"

Fred Pye has been invited to attend the Prince Michael Premier Award Ceremony at the Savoy Hotel, London on 2 December 2003.

For further information about Alternatives contact Tom Farrell on 0151 225 5509, or Martin McIntyre at: Martin.McIntyre@liverpool.gov.uk.