Council supports Road Safety Week heroes

Cheshire West and Chester Council is supporting the UK’s biggest road safety event, Road Safety Week, coordinated by Brake, the road safety charity.

According to Brake, deaths and serious injuries on roads dropped by a fifth in 2020, due to lockdowns reducing traffic.

Their analysis[i] of Government statistics[ii] indicates about 300 deaths and more than 6,000 serious injuries were prevented due to lighter traffic in 2020, compared with 2019.

Road deaths and serious injuries declined across the North West by 437 people or 21 per cent last year compared with 2019.

There were, however, still 1,460 deaths and more than 22,000 serious injuries[iii] on roads in 2020, causing devastation to families across the country.

The Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategy Transport, Councillor Karen Shore said: “To show the Council’s support for the event, Chester’s town hall, Eastgate clock and Newgate bridge will be illuminated in yellow lights all this week.”

“Road Safety Week gives us all an opportunity to recognise that we can all be road safety heroes by using roads safely and taking actions for road safety in our families, schools, communities and where we work.

“As traffic levels rise again, Road Safety Week is celebrating the work of road safety heroes across the country who are working to tackle deaths and serious injuries and turn the one-year drop into a downward trend.”

This year’s campaign also celebrates the invaluable efforts of the emergency services, including those who police the roads and save lives, at the roadside and in hospitals, and the work of the National Road Victim Service, caring for the emotional and practical needs of road victim families, as well as community services including mental health services and disability and peer support charities.”

Everyone can do their bit, local authorities providing cycle paths; every individual and companies working to ensure they use vehicles safely; and communities working for changes where they live such as introducing and adhering to 20mph speed limits. The Council’s Road Safety team organises free cycling safety courses through Bikeability for children in schools, adults, families and would-be commuters.

Brake is calling for individuals, communities and organisations to share stories of their own road safety heroes – through social media, in schools, in company team meetings or special events.

Head of Campaigns at Brake, Jason Wakeford said: “Road Safety Week is the UK’s biggest annual road safety campaign and is a great opportunity to speak up for road safety.

“This year everyone can acknowledge and celebrate the heroic efforts of people working to save lives on roads across the country. We urge everyone to visit the Road Safety Week website for loads of ways to take part in the campaign all this week.”