Road Safety

Introduction

Every year, around 3,500 people are killed on Britain's roads and 40,000 are seriously injured, in total, there are over 300,000 road casualties, in nearly 240,000 collisions, and about fifteen times that number of non-injury incidents.

In Tayside during the calendar year of 2006 there were over 30 people seriously injured or killed in road traffic collisions. These incidents continue to put an ever increasing demand on Tayside Fire and Rescue's resources.

Tayside Fire and Rescue Board's IRMP document 'Towards a Safer Tayside' set's strategies for, amongst other things, reducing the number of deaths and injuries due to road traffic collisions and reducing the number of road traffic collisions in general.

Present Situation

Tayside Fire and Rescue attended 222 RTC's in 2006.

Tayside Fire and Rescue recently was a major partner in the Safe Drive Stay Alive initiative which took place in Dundee in December 2006. We are represented on the CFOA(S) Road Safety Forum and also the Tayside Road Safety Forum. Tayside Fire and Rescue are also represented on the Tayside Safety Camera Partnership and Crimestoppers. Despite this and although, Road Safety input is given on the 'Young Firefighters Scheme' and the 'Fire Academy Scheme', in prevention terms our approach is very much fragmented.

"The Way Forward"

A recent decision by the Tayside Fire and Rescue's Management Team to endorse a proposal to second a Watch Manager to Tayside Police for a period of two months, working with Tayside Police's Road Safety Co-ordinator two days per working week in order to progress Road Safety within Tayside Fire and Rescue. Their reference will be to analyse and evaluate the current initiatives which Tayside Police undertake and ascertain which are relevant to Tayside Fire and Rescue.

Tayside Fire and Rescues' ultimate aim is to develop and foster partnership working, striving to reduce the number of deaths and injuries due to road traffic collisions and reducing the number of road traffic collisions in general.

Useful Links
www.safedrivestayalive.org
www.roadsafetyscotland.org.uk
www.brake.org.uk
www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk
www.jrso.com
www.safetayside.co.uk
www.dsa.gov.uk
www.rospa.org.uk
www.trafficclub.co.uk