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Week
Commencing 3 June 2002
Strict
new measures planned to curb ‘boy racers’
The
DTLR is considering banning new drivers from using high performance
cars in a bid to cut the number of deaths caused by young male drivers,
according to a report in the Sunday Express (26 May). The tough
new proposals also include imposing special speed limits on newly
qualified motorists, a ban on night driving and a ban on having
friends in the car in the months after passing the driving test.
Drivers under 21 make up about one sixth of licence holders but
are involved in one quarter of all fatal accidents. In the year
2000 crashes killed 113 young people aged between 16 and 19 and
injured 11,213 others, according to the report.
LTPs not focussing on pedestrian needs
Local
transport minister Sally Keeble has indicated that the Government
is to investigate claims that pedestrian measures are not being given
enough emphasis in local transport plans, according to a report in
Surveyor (30 May). The Institution of Civil Engineers states that
highways and bridges account for more than 50 per cent of expenditure,
with pedestrian schemes only accounting for somewhere between 5 and
10 per cent.
Make
road safety your goal, DTLR urges fans
The dangers of morning drinking and driving during the World Cup form
the basis of a new advertising campaign, which was launched last week
by the DTLR.
Focussing on the fact that on average 2,000 people are breathalysed
every day, throughout the day, the £200,000 radio campaign highlights
how drinking habits are likely to change during the World Cup, with
many matches being played early in the morning.
"The World Cup is an exciting time for people across the country,"
transport minister David Jamieson said at the campaign launch. "Pubs
and bars are being allowed to open early for people to watch matches
but the drink-drive laws stay the same. It is important that people
remember that drinking in the morning will impair their ability to
drive throughout the day – and the police will be giving breath
tests.
"This campaign highlights morning drinking, but I hope it continues
to remind people that drinking and driving is not acceptable at any
time. At a time of national excitement and celebration let’s
avoid the tragedy that drink driving brings."
More @ http://www.press.dtlr.gov.uk
RoadSafe
responds to DTLR learner driver consultation
RoadSafe
is urging a number of new steps to be considered in response the
DTLR’s latest consultation paper, ‘Introducing a more
structured approach to learning to drive’. RoadSafe is a new
road safety partnership comprising leading companies in the motor
and transport industries, the Government and road safety professionals.
The DTLR launched the document with an aim of reducing the number
of accidents involving new drivers, and to raise learner driver
standards. It has sought the views of number of organisations including
the Advanced Driving School, the British Road Federation, the CBI
and RoadSafe.
In response to the consultation, RoadSafe is calling on the DTLR
to allow driving instructors to use their discretion to decide when
a candidate should retake their driving test after failing. It has
also recommended that novice drivers should be required to use P-plates
for their first six months on the road, to help them develop better
driving habits and to alert other road users of their inexperience.
More
@ http://www.roadsafe.com
Group
formed to study use of BiOptics
A
UK-based group, BiOptic Driving, has been formed to study the use
of BiOptics to enable those with low vision to drive safely. "There
are so many paradoxes and anomalies surrounding this subject in
the UK and EU that we felt it might be helpful to try and make sense
of the status quo," said Simon Phillips, co-founder.
According to BioOptic Driving, experience in the USA and elsewhere
indicates that with the right training and visual aids it is possible
for someone with low vision to drive legally and safely.
More @ http://www.BiopticDriving.org.uk
DTLR
publishes road condition survey
The report
of the 2001 National Road Maintenance Condition Survey (NRMCS) on
the condition of roads and footways in England and Wales was published
by the DTLR last week. This report presents information on both the
surface condition and structural condition of roads. To read the survey
go to http://www.press.dtlr.gov.uk
Speed
limits to be lowered on south Wales road
Speed
limits on stretches of the A465 in south Wales are to be reduced,
according to a report in Surveyor (30 May). The Welsh environment
minister Sue Essex has proposed a 50mph limit between the villages
of Pandy and Wern Gifford and a 40mph limit at the Wern Gifford
junction in Pandy, which is adjacent to a school.
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