Thursday 4th November 2004

ABD calls for radical road safety measures

Accident shrines should spell out what happened, says drivers' group

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Following reports that councils are to ban floral tributes to road accident victims, the Association of British Drivers (ABD) is proposing what is calls "a better solution". It is calling for shrines to play a more important role in raising awareness of danger on the road.

Floral tributes are undeniably important to grieving relatives, says the ABD, but their usefulness in preventing future accidents is undermined by the reluctance of local authorities to release details of what caused the accident. Such details, combined with the floral tribute, would send a powerful, targeted message to road users which would save lives in the future.

"When people see a floral tribute to a victim, they aren't told what caused the crash, so they don't know whether or how to change their own behaviour to prevent the crash happening again," says ABD road safety spokesman Mark McArthur-Christie. "We would like to see full information published on the causes of fatal accidents, and, where a shrine is appropriate, it should tell people why the accident happened."

The best legacy to any road accident victim is for their death to be used to prevent a similar tragedy happening again, says the ABD. That isn't happening at the moment, so the ABD is calling for a structured approach by local authorities to work with grieving relatives to maximise the safety impact of the tributes.

Without this, says the ABD, shrines can fuel ignorance of the true causes of road crashes and stoke up hysteria in favour of what it calls "inappropriate and ineffective safety measures."

The ABD's prescription is a common format which includes signage describing the cause of the accidents:

• "Drunk Driver Overtook on Blind Bend - 4 killed - Don't Drink and Drive"
• "Driver fell asleep at 4am - Take a Break""
• "Motorcyclist killed hitting car which turned right out of B491 - Think bike"
• "Horse and rider killed by car passing too close - slow down for horses"
• "Child killed running into road - Children - Stop! Look! Listen! Drivers - Watch for Children and be ready to stop"

"A campaign like this would be a hugely positive step both towards reducing casualties and helping the relatives of crash victims come to terms with their loss," concludes the ABD's Nigel Humphries.

ABD general enquiries and membership: 07000 781544. For more information about the ABD go here: www.abd.org.uk.

[stackmonkey]

Seems like a good idea to me, if the decent common sense approach is maintained through to completion

[Mr Whippy]

The floral tributes at the roadside are usually a good reminder on their own that we are all mortal, and can go at any minute, whether it's our own fault in driving or not.

Statistics might not be that useful at the road side, you'd have rubber necking as people read the gossip, which is what it would be to many people driving past an accident scene...

Perhaps using the accident's cause to define a more adequate warning of the potential hazards in future would be a good step though, kinda like what they are saying. But use good old conventional signing.
Don't want locals bunging up their own signs everywhere where they "think" accident might happen etc!

Seya

Dave

[JMGS4]

VERY good idea from the ABD, but I can't see it happening with the rabid anti.motorist government we have at the moment.....the country is run by a bunch of lefty lentilists who need a damn good smacking!

[chickensoup]

Quote
"Drunk Driver Overtook on Blind Bend - 4 killed - Don't Drink and Drive"

Not the best example
DONT OVERTAKE ON A BLIND BEND
is a little more relevant

[v8thunder]

Nah, they'll never go for it. Bliar can't make any money out of it, and it doesn't persecute the motorist enough

[robyn]

If there was a way to make revenue from it I can see it going ahead.

Currently all it offers is to make the roads safer and thats not the real issue now is it.......

[Gooby]

Hold on... The council will ban you from putting down a few bunches of flowers at the site of a loved ones accident / death. What are they going to do, fine you? will there be a by-law about this? What do you think the responce from a grieving mother will be when she bends down to place a bunch of flowers in the place where her child died? Is this country going mad? Let them grieve, let them grieve in thier own way. However wrong the dead driver is, it is not the time or the place to state that he was drunk and stupid.

[james_j]

Too much common sense and not enough revenue. I don't hold out too much hope.

[gh0st-preop]

I feel this is a good idea in principle but i hope it doesnt fall into the hands on the ghouls....

[Black S2K]

Great Idea, now what will it be dumbed down to?

SPEED KILLS

SPEED KILLS

SP...etc

[victormeldrew]

... plus scamera of course. Not convinced this would work, just another distraction and possibly hazardous roadside furniture. I can see a whole new trend in ghoulish rubbernecking too.