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RSOs assist with 'bad boys' TV series

A television series aimed at changing the behaviour of 'bad boy racers' will feature a crash reconstruction arranged by Peterborough's road safety team when it is broadcast on Channel 5 on Monday 14 August.

The reconstruction was organised by Peterborough RSOs Beverley Jones (right in pic) and Clair George in association with Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service, East Anglia Ambulance Service and Peterborough Regional College.  

The sequence forms part of the 'Eddie Jordan's Bad Boy Racers' series, in which eight young men with a history of car-related offences receive mentoring from Formula 1 supremo, Eddie Jordan.

Clair George said: "This reconstruction was similar to our annual 'For My Girlfriend' campaign, which illustrates how 'boy racers' could kill their girlfriends in a road crash.  

"We hope the reconstruction will convince all 'bad boy racers' - those in the series and those among the viewers - that their driving behaviour can cause immense grief to relatives of crash victims."

The 'bad boy racers', who are from London and surrounding areas, were given no advance warning of what to expect until they arrived in Peterborough and were whisked off to have make-up simulating realistic injuries applied by Peterborough Regional College students.

They were then put into the front seats of two crashed cars with their close friends in the rear seats. The front seat occupants had only minor injuries and were quickly released but then had to watch as the fire service and paramedics worked to rescue their friends while treating them for serious injuries.

Clair George added: "This scenario was designed using research conducted in 2000 that revealed how young male drivers especially dread killing or maiming a girlfriend, best mate or other close companion. The crash reconstruction plays on this emotional vulnerability in a bid to make young drivers think about the awful consequences of bad driving."

Eddie Jordon said: "To see the terror on the boys' faces when they were placed in the crashed cars, waiting to be cut free, made me realise that most joy-riders are never confronted with the potential consequence of their actions.

"This scheme teaches them an important lesson. I applaud the professionalism of the rescue services involved and hope that more such schemes can be run throughout the UK."

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