Campaign launched in London to alert drivers to rules of the road
A campaign has been launched to remind London's drivers of the rules of the road (Surveyor, 9 November).  

The Transport for London (TfL) scheme, Know the Rules, hopes to re-educate London drivers about the regulations and penalties involved in civil traffic offences.

Leaflets, roadside posters and newspaper adverts will remind people of the regulations covering bus lanes, yellow box junctions, red routes, yellow lines and 21 road signs.

Patrick Troy, TfL's head of traffic enforcement, said: "These regulations are crucial to traffic flow. We have already seen real improvements on some roads in London."

For further details go to: http://www.tfl.gov.uk

Euro Award for Sutton
The London Borough of Sutton has won an Excellence in Road Safety Award for its work in the fields of pedestrian skills and cycle training for children, new drivers, powered two-wheelers and the elderly.  

Earlier this year, Sutton become signatories of the European Road Safety Charter and entered the award scheme, which was judged by a panel of experts in Brussels. Sutton's won the Regions and Cities category, and the award will be presented a ceremony in Brussels on 29 November.

Roy Buchanan, Sutton's principal RSO, said: "We, in Sutton, are a small unit but try to prioritise the most vulnerable road users like children and the elderly. To be recognised on the European stage is very encouraging."

Roy Buchanan will be speaking about motorcycling at the Pan London Road Safety Forum on 12 January. For further details contact, roy.buchanan@sutton.gov.uk

Concern over 'drugalysers' delay
The RAC Foundation has criticised the Home Office for the delay in introducing a 'drugalyser' roadside test to detect drug drivers.

The RAC Foundation told BBC Radio Scotland that roadside drug testing equipment is already being used in Australia and - if introduced in the UK - could save about 200 lives a year.

A recent study funded by the Scottish Executive estimated that one in 10 drivers in Scotland drive under the influence of illegal drugs. There are concerns that not enough is being done to tackle the problem.

Shelia Rainger, from the RAC Foundation, says: "We suspect part of the problem is a reluctance to talk about drug driving because it implies somehow that taking drugs might be okay providing that you are not going to get behind the wheel. We think this is nonsense and people are dying because of the reluctance of people to talk about this openly. It is a taboo that needs to be broken."

For the full story go to: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/low/scotland/6118158.stm

CAPT publishes in-car safety poster

The Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) has published a poster to help parents understand the recent changes in child restraint laws. The poster reminds parents that they must use a child car seat that's right for their child's age, height and weight.

Details of cost and how to order are available at www.capt.org.uk, or from Irene Mitchell, irene.mitchell@capt.org.uk

TTC talks to prisoners

The driver training and alcohol awareness organisation, the TTC Group, has given a series of presentations on alcohol and driving to inmates at a Staffordshire prison.

50 inmates attended the sessions, which were designed to help them lead a more productive life on their release from jail. A demonstration showed the varying strengths of alcohol, and how drinks are now served in larger measures. New police powers to breath test motorists and gain evidence at the roadside were also revealed.

For more information contact the TTC Group on 0845 270 4380 or visit www.ttc-uk.com

CAPT launches traffic calming resource

A new resource to assess the impact of traffic on children's lives, and the effectiveness of traffic calming measures, has been produced by Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT).

The resource is primarily aimed at road safety officers and highway engineers, but may also prove useful to local community groups.

"Traffic calming measures have traditionally tended to focus on reducing the overall number of accidents occurring and/or reducing the severity of injuries caused," explained CAPT's chief executive, Katrina Phillips. "The extent to which speed and traffic volume in residential areas affects children's lifestyles is less well known. We hope the resource will enable a broader approach when setting outcomes to traffic calming."

The resource is available free of charge as a download from the CAPT website www.capt.org.uk 

Road show hits Cardiff

A UK transport 'road show' to educate thousands of the country's professional drivers about drink driving has visited Cardiff. 190 bus and coach operators attended the two-day event staged by Telford Training Consultants (TTC).

TTC Road Safety Manager Colin Pettener said: "A consistent message on alcohol, and especially the problems of the morning after, is going out to transport professionals. In Cardiff I showed how people are drinking more than they think by pouring red wine from a half pint beer glass into a large wine glass. It didn't overspill."

For more information contact the TTC Group on 0845 270 4380 or visit www.ttc-uk.com

Speeding drivers see footage of offences
Westminster Council is allowing drivers who have received a fine after being caught on CCTV cameras to view the footage online (Surveyor, 9 November).

The council hope the footage will convince drivers to pay the fine and not go through the appeal process. Danny Chalkley, cabinet member for economic development and transport, said: "We believe this open and transparent initiative will contribute to a reduction in the number of challenges to tickets the Council receives."

Teach young drivers differently, DIA says
The Driving Instructors Association (DIA) said Road Safety Week was the 'perfect opportunity to persuade young people to look at their driving skills in a completely different way'.

DIA says that passing the driving test is all about hands and feet, rather than eyes and brain, but safe driving is much more than this. It advocates a staged licensing system, which would mean that young motorists would use P-plates until they have passed an extended version of Pass Plus.

DIA chief executive, Eddie Barnaville, said: "It's criminal that a 17 year-old can pass their test one day and be out driving a Ferrari on the motorway the next!

For further information contact Vikki Carley on 020 8665 8024, or newsdesk@driving.org

Police to face tough new drink checks
Police officers could face a new zero-tolerance approach to drinking, even if they have broken no law or are within the drink- drive limit.

Random tests for alcohol will be carried out and officers will be considered unfit for duty and face a misconduct charge if they reach just one third of the drink-drive limit.

Concerns have been raised that the new policy could see careers blemished if one too many drinks the night before work puts officers over the tough new limit. The Police Federation, which represents rank-and-file officers, is warning officers who believe they may be over the new limit and who are called to duty unexpectedly to decline to work.

For the full story go to: http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk

Spider loose on the M4 verges

Drivers spotting a big yellow 'spider' on the grass verges of the M4 near Heathrow should not panic - it is not of the arachnid family but the latest in horticultural technology.

The Highways Agency is testing a new remote controlled grass-cutting machine called the 'Spider', which is manufactured in America.

This new equipment will help to improve road worker safety. As the Spider is radio controlled, the road worker can cut the grass from a safe position, away from fast-moving traffic. The Spider is capable of climbing steep banks to a maximum slope of 40 degrees, reducing the risk of road workers slipping on uneven ground.

U-turn causes nine crashes
A pensioner caused nine separate crashes after executing a U-turn on a German motorway.

Ingrid Schoppenhauer, 76, caused £35,000 of damage along the A9 Autobahn as drivers piled into each other. She calmly explained to officers that she had been trying to get to the Bavarian city of Bayreuth but had taken a wrong turn and got on the A9 Autobahn heading towards Berlin.

She said she wanted to get off the motorway as quickly as possible and decided to do a U-turn and head back to the correct exit. No one was seriously injured in the accidents but police confiscated the woman's licence.