23 October 2013
Motorists are being asked one simple question
in a new road safety campaign that aims to challenge driver
behaviour on Norfolk’s roads.
Why wouldn’t you Drive sober?
Belt up? Ignore
it? Slow down?
By asking this simple question, the Think!
Norfolk partnership is inviting drivers to think about their
behaviour on the county s roads.
The campaign, which is being launched at the
Forum in Norwich today (Thursday, 24 October) is asking motorists
to always pause for thought, think about their driving habits and
make changes to save their lives and the lives of others.
At the launch, people will be invited to walk
inside a giant cube that invites them to identify the solution to
making Norfolk’s roads safer. The cube will remain at the Forum for
the rest of the week.
Statistics show that we are potentially more
likely to be the cause of a road traffic collision, rather than the
victim.
Drinking and driving, not wearing a seat belt,
using a mobile phone when driving and speeding have all been
identified as the four key behaviours that frequently cause
casualties and fatalities on Norfolk s roads.
Why Wouldn’t You? is the latest campaign to be
launched by the road safety partnership of Norfolk County Council,
Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service, Norfolk Constabulary, Norfolk
Safety Camera Partnership, East of England Ambulance Service NHS
Trust and the Highways Agency.
Alec Byrne, Norfolk County Councillor and
Chairman of the Norfolk Casualty Reduction Partnership Group, said:
Every driver in Norfolk can keep our roads safer by asking
themselves this simple question each and every time they make a
journey.
“Alone with the immeasurable pain and
suffering experienced by families who lose someone, the cost to the
community of road traffic casualties is very high
I appeal to every motorist to please, think
about the way you drive and the decisions you make.
These four key
behaviours are completely unacceptable and utterly reckless but we
continue to see them played out every day on Norfolk s roads. In
behaving in this way, drivers are not only risking their own lives
but also those of innocent people; their passengers, pedestrians
and other road users.
By taking responsibility for our own driving
and, if necessary, making very simple changes such as refusing to
answer your phone when you re driving or slowing down to a safer
speed, we can all make a difference, an important difference and
keep people safe.
Chief Inspector Chris Spinks, Head of the
Norfolk and Suffolk Roads Policing Unit, said: Wearing your
seatbelt, not drinking and driving, driving at an appropriate speed
and not using your mobile whilst driving are things we all have
control over, and we want every driver to think about their
behaviour behind the wheel and make the right choice.
“Roads policing officers stop drivers every
day who are doing one of these four things and have heard all the
excuses. Whatever your reason, it’s not worth the risk.
“Whilst police can enforce the law, it s too
late when we and our emergency services colleagues attend the
scene of a serious or fatal collision.
We work closely with our
partners in Think! Norfolk to educate drivers and young people who
are soon to get behind the wheel, and that is what this campaign is
all about. Throughout this campaign, we will be using #fatal4 on
social media to reinforce this message.”
Statistics show that 4663 drivers were stopped
by Norfolk Constabulary last year for not wearing a seat belt,
mobile phone offences or jumping a red light.
Of those, 1537 people
took a Driver Education and Behaviour course. In 2013 to date,
2,974 have been stopped by the police for the same offences with
1394 completing a Driver Education and Behaviour course.
In addition, police dealt with 35,961
motorists in Norfolk for speeding last year, with 14,413 people
attending a speed awareness course. Figures for this year show that
there have been 36,703 speeding offences in Norfolk in 2013 and to
date and 17,183 people have also completed a speed awareness
course.
Research has established that in over 95% of
incidents on the road the major cause was human error.
Calculations based on information provided by
the Department for Transport indicate the cost of road crashes in
Norfolk in 2010 was more than 200 million.
This calculation is
based on the costs to the emergency services, health service, loss
of income and crash damage.
The campaign will be supported by
advertisements on buses, in the press, and shopping centres,
including Chapelfield in Norwich.
Its main aims are to:
- Increase public awareness of the key four
behaviours that can lead to fatalities on Norfolk s roads.
- Reduce the number of people killed or
seriously injured on Norfolk s roads.
- Encourage road users to take personal
responsibility for their driving behaviour and help make Norfolk s
roads safer.
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