Road safety sessions “insightful” and “interesting”

The Safer Essex Roads Partnership has been working with the National Citizen Service (NCS) this summer to engage with teenagers from across the county.

More than 200 teenagers aged 16 and 17, took part in road safety events in Braintree and Colchester which focussed on the main causes of deaths and serious injuries. They worked in teams to build skills for life, for taking on challenges, making new friends, and for contributing to their community.

The event addressed the distractions that they may encounter when driving, with each attendee being invited to enter a virtual environment in which they safely experienced a crash caused by a distracted young driver. They then tested their reactions on a ‘Batak’ machine which demonstrated the difference in reaction time when distracted. Finally, their new knowledge was put to the test in a road safety quiz  which included questions regarding the new changes in the highway code.

Those who took part said that they found the sessions “insightful” and have commented that the event “made road safety interesting”. Some of the participants have already pledged to “definitely not use a phone whilst driving and to always wear a seatbelt” and to “encourage my mum to stop using her phone whilst driving and, if she needs to text someone, I will do it for her”.

Drivers aged 17-20 are over 5 times more likely to be involved in a collision resulting in a death or serious injury where the cause was recorded as ‘a loss of control caused by either high speed, impairment or other conscious risk taking’; this initiative attempts to provide some understanding and ‘virtual’ experience in preparation for driving or riding and to highlight the consequences as a result of actions.

26 July 2022