At Road Traffic Accident Law Scotland, we're supporting Road Safety Week which is taking place this week (15th - 21st September.) The focus this year is on recognising the work undertaken by our road safety heroes.
More than 1.3 million people die on the world’s roads every year and road crashes are the leading cause of death for children and young people aged 5–29 years.
In the UK, on average, someone is killed or seriously injured on a road every 20 minutes. Children are especially vulnerable on roads, with more than six children aged 15 and under killed or seriously injured on a road in the UK every day. Young drivers aged 17–24 are at particularly high risk of death or serious injury.
Road crashes are tragic events where death and/or life-changing injuries have a devastating effect on families and communities. As well as the immeasurable cost of the misery inflicted on those injured and bereaved, the economic cost of reported and unreported road crashes is also immense, estimated to be in the region of £36 billion per year.
So, this week, we’re celebrating the road safety heroes in our lives including:
- School crossing patrols officers who help children walk or ride safely to and from school.
- Roads policing officers who enforce traffic laws and ensure that anyone driving dangerously is caught and appropriately punished.
- Road designers and highways engineers who design safe roads to reduce the risk of crashes occurring and reduce the severity of injuries if a crash does happen.
- Fire and rescue services who get people to safety after a crash and make crash scenes safe to protect people from harm.
- Ambulance services who get medical help to people as quickly as possible. This includes air ambulance charities like SCAA here in Scotland.
- Medical staff in hospitals who provide post-crash care which is essential to saving lives and preventing life-changing injuries.
- Other health professionals including Surgeons, Physiotherapists, Psychologists, Speech and language therapists and Occupational therapists who provide Rehabilitation treatment to help injured patients recover from their injuries, or to adjust to life with new medical issues or disabilities.
- Police family liaison officers who help families when someone is killed or seriously injured in a road crash.
- Support services providers who give emotional and practical support after a crash and help road victims cope emotionally and practically, and adjust to a new reality.
You can ‘be a road safety hero’ too.
Everyone can be a road safety hero. Whether we walk, ride or drive, we all have a responsibility to use roads safely to protect ourselves and others. This means choosing safe modes of transport and safe vehicles, complying with Highway code, travelling at speeds appropriate for the road conditions and educating people about safe road use. Governments can better regulate drivers, with licensing and traffic rules, roads policing and penalties that are robust and fair.
To show us how you have taken part in Road Safety Week tweet us @RTA_Law and @brakecharity using the hashtag #RoadSafetyWeek.
If you do find yourself as a victim of a road traffic collision, our experienced specialist team is here to help. To find out if you can make a compensation claim, call us on 01721 728238, or submit your claim online and a member of the team will get back to you as soon as possible.
Jodi Gordon - Partner - RTA LAW Scotland - Guiding you through the uknown