..presenting road safety across the UK


ROAD SAFETY NEWS - WEEK COMMENCING 8 MARCH 2004

Parental fears hamper walking and riding to school
Nearly two thirds of parents are so worried about abduction that they are not teaching their children basic road safety, according to research released last week.

The study found that over 60 per cent of parents who drive to school would allow their child to walk or cycle if they knew they would be protected from strangers. The more common dangers of being hit by a car or knocked off a bicycle are less of a priority.

According to the research, conducted as part of Ready Brek's road safety education in primary schools, parents are also worried about the condition of their roads, with 77 per cent considering the roads in their local area to be unsafe for children.

"The research provides valuable feedback from those we are trying to protect," said Liz Barkwith, speaking on behalf of LARSOA. "Parents must realise that the most effective way to raise their child's road safety awareness is to teach them by example. Children are not able to judge distance and speed of traffic so it is even more important that they are taught basic rules to follow.

The survey found that 41 per cent of parents who drove to and from school actually lived less than a mile away. "Children travelling regularly by car don't get the road experience or develop the awareness that those who walk or cycle do," Liz Barkwith added. "Parents who live so close to the school need to make a committed effort to teach their child road skills by not driving. They would also help reduce congestion."

More @ www.readybrek.co.uk/roadsafety
Camera site casualty figures to be published
The crash history of every speed camera is to be made public, according to a report that appeared in The Times recently. The report said that police and local authorities will publish the number of casualties at every site before and after a camera was installed, allowing drivers to assess their impact on safety.

"We have been asking for this information to be placed in the public domain to demonstrate that cameras are about casualty reduction," said Ian Bell, speed camera liaison officer for the Association of Chief Police Officers. "Hopefully it will raise public confidence in cameras and win over those who suspect cameras are about making money."

Mr Bell added that several of Britain’s 42 police and local authority camera partnerships already published the number of casualties at each site before a camera was installed. But they do not reveal what is happening to the rate since the camera began flashing.

"The before and after data would be published on the websites of each partnership," he explained. "It would also be a good idea to include it on penalty notices so drivers could see why the camera which caught them had been installed."

More @ http://www.pacts.org.uk/news/newsframe.htm
Authorities defend road safety record
Local authorities have defended their road safety performance in the wake of statistics revealing the fatal and serious injuries have risen by more than a third in some areas - though widespread reductions have been achieved in many areas (Surveyor, 26 February).

The DfT has published a regional and local authority breakdown of KSIs. The figures for 2002 are shown alongside the 1994-98 baseline to indicate progress towards meeting the Government’s 10-year plan target of a 40 per cent cut in KSIs by 2010.

The vast majority of counties and unitaries show sizeable reductions, with 14 already exceeding the 40 per cent target and another 39 achieving reductions of 20 per cent or more.

Casualties had increased in 17 areas and in Bristol and Bournemouth KSIs were 37 per cent up on the baseline average. A Bristol spokeswoman said the council was ‘very concerned’ about the 2002 increase which contrasted with a falling trend in KSIs since the 1990s. Road safety officers believe the figures may have been influenced by a change made to accident report forms in 2002 to include descriptions of serious injuries to help the police with severity coding.
DfT encourages more flexibility over 30mph zones
Highway authorities have been given more flexibility to introduce 30mph limits in villages, in long awaited guidance from the DfT (Surveyor 26 February 2004).

The traffic advisory leaflet circular 1/04 encourages the majority of councils to consider 30mph limits in any settlement with 20 or more houses – or fewer if there is a church or shop. The document forms part of the DfT’s pledge to make 30mph village limits the norm.

Villages just 400 meters long should be considered for 30mph limits, the Department advises - but it would prefer ‘600m where possible to avoid too many changes of speed limit’.

The 1993 guidance that development should be continuous – ‘built up with development in depth on both sides of the road’ – has been scrapped. Instead, settlements only need a minimum density of three homes per 100 meters.
Australia to trial point-to-point speed cameras
The Australian State of New South Wales has announced it will trial point-to-point speed cameras targetting long-distance speeders. The cameras will operate on a 12km and a 34km stretch of the Pacific Highway, and a 4km length of the M4 motorway.

For further details go to http://www.pacts.org.uk/news/newsframe.htm and follow the link.
Bikers and cyclists clash over bus lane experiment
Groups representing cyclists and powered two-wheelers clashed as an investigation opened into the experimental use of London bus lanes by motorcyclists (Surveyor, 26 February).

The two sides made conflicting claims about TfL’s trial on three major routes into the capital.

Since October 2002, motorbikes have been permitted to use bus lanes on the A41 Finchley Road, A23 Brixton Road, and A13 East India Dock Road during bus priority hours. TfL’s head of project development, David Wroe, told the committee it had decided to extend the trial owing to insufficient casualty data.

Motorcycling groups said this showed there was no increase in risk to cyclists and pedestrians but cycling campaigners countered that cyclists were being intimidated as well as put at risk - and that this would deter more people from cycling.

The London Cycling Campaign said that the trial sent the wrong signal to road users by encouraging the widespread illegal use of bus lanes – also arguing that the higher speeds reached by motorbikes able to use bus lanes inevitably increased the risk and severity of injury.
Video conferencing – an alternative to driving to meetings
Television personality Noel Edmonds is to use his video conferencing experience in the battle to reduce the number of accidents involving company car and van drivers.

Mr Edmonds has launched a new video conferencing venture, face2face, a nationwide network of over 300 video meeting rooms. He will use the technology to address RoSPA’s seminar on managing occupational road risk at the Watford Hilton, Hertfordshire, on April 21, from his Devon home.

The aim is to show delegates how thousands of miles of driving could be avoided by using video to enable people at work to link up for meetings around the country – thereby reducing risks, costs and stress.

"The idea is to promote the concept of ‘meeting without moving’," Roger Bibbings, RoSPA occupational safety adviser said. "By broadcasting live to our seminar Noel will show how video-conferencing can help organisations eliminate exposure to risk through unnecessary travel by road. RoSPA has said for a long time that many road journeys could be avoided by using video conferencing or alternative safer means of transport."

More information can be found at www.rospa.com/morr or by ringing 0121 248 2120.
Camera partnership looks into SID signs
The London Safety Camera Partnership is considering the use of Speed Indicative Devices (SIDs) that flash a warning sign to speeding drivers, but has denied press reports that SIDs could replace many safety cameras installed on the capital’s road network (Local Transport Today, 26 February).

"The partnership denies any intention to either reduce the number of operational cameras – fixed or mobile – in London, or [that it] has plans to replace any existing cameras with Speed Indicator Devices," a spokeswoman said. She confirmed, however, that the partnership had submitted a proposal to the DfT to assess the effectiveness of SIDs.
Advertising complaint upheld
A complaint made by the Dorset Cyclists' Network and members of the public about a press advertisement for Halfords that was headlined ‘Beat the ban for less’, has been upheld by the ASA.

The advertisement, for a hands free car phone system, showed an image of a woman apparently dialling numbers on a hands-free mobile phone while driving with only one hand on the wheel.

The advertisement also showed an image of two speed camera detectors, with text next to the image stating ‘Don't be caught speeding! We support speed limits and safe driving - that's why you need detectors.’

The complainants argued that the camera detector claim was irresponsible because it encouraged people to drive above the speed limit and break the law, and that the image of the woman was also irresponsible and likely to encourage dangerous practice.

With regard to the speed camera detector the ASA advised the advertisers to amend the advertisement.

With regard to the mobile phone, the ASA considered that ‘because the woman could be seen to be driving with one hand only on the steering wheel and because motorists could be prosecuted for failing to have proper control when using a hands-free phone, the image of the woman was irresponsible and was likely to be seen to encourage dangerous practice’.