Brake has paid tribute to employers that chose to ‘make the pledge’ during Road Safety Week, to observe the Six ‘S’s and be slow, sober, secure, silent, sharp and sustainable.
Almost 1,000 organisations, including fleet operators, leasing companies and suppliers, registered to take part in the campaign, organised by the road safety charity.
Ellie Pearson, professional engagement manager at Brake, told Fleet News that through their planned activities, they had reached a combined total of almost 500,000 people.
She said: “Road Safety Week is a really great opportunity for organisations to help raise awareness of road safety, not only in their own organisation, but also in the communities in which they operate, and with their wider network of customers and contacts.”
The Brake Pledge is one of the charity’s flagship campaigns to raise awareness of the dangers faced on the roads, which is why it was chosen as the theme for this year’s Road Safety Week.
“We’re delighted to see that so many organisations have really embraced the pledge and got involved in such creative ways throughout the week,” said Pearson.
Northumbria Police’s Op Dragoon team supported the initiative by educating employees at one of the region’s top businesses.
The team, whose remit is enforcement, engagement and education, regularly visits schools, colleges and local military bases to give road safety demonstrations. But, during Road Safety Week, it instead descended on EDF Energy in Sunderland to talk about road safety with its 1,600 employees.
PC Jami Blythe, education officer in Op Dragoon, said: “Education is a key element of Op Dragoon. We have worked hard to develop this strand over the past two years and working in partnership with EDF Energy is an exciting opportunity to make links with industry.
“By showing employees the shocking results of collisions and car accidents we can promote the importance of road safety and make the North East roads a safer place for everyone.”
They were joined at the company by North East Ambulance Service, Northumberland Fire and Rescue and Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue.
Andrew Lister, health, safety and environment coordinator at EDF Energy, said: “Road safety is becoming an increasingly important topic to educate our staff about.
“We hope that the week of activities will help our team think about things like tyre pressure and the importance of regular checks on their vehicles, as well as safe driving.”
The company, which is one of the region’s biggest employers, also encourages its employees to become spokespeople, spreading positive messages about safety to their families and the community.
Many companies, such as Telogis and Warner Goodman LLP, chose to raise road safety awareness in communities by displaying giant Road Safety Week banners at local schools, while Contract Hire and Leasing worked with local primary school children to design a safe car.
O’Donovan Waste Disposal took its trucks into local primary schools to talk to children about road safety. “It’s vital that we educate children about road safety,” said managing director Jacqueline O’Donovan.
“We are keen to ensure we are making the best choices to help further protect vulnerable road users – and this includes an education process for the younger generation.”
Skanska and Licence Bureau visited local secondary schools to raise awareness among older children about the importance of road safety.
Other companies, including Siemens and Arval, chose to raise awareness among their own employees and customers by running road safety days to spread the message of the pledge. Arval’s Tracey Fuller also travelled the country visiting customers, including Abbvie and Vodafone, delivering road safety messages as part of her pledge presentations.
Pearson said many companies, including Woods Coaches, TSP Projects, Thompsons Solicitors, Driver Hire Nationwide, and Simpson Millar LLP, also used Brake’s Pledge selfie boards to raise awareness among employees about the import-ance of staying safe on the roads.
“Thank you to everyone who took part this year,” said Pearson. “We look forward to working with you all again on Road Safety Week 2017.”
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Gareth has more than 20 years’ experience as a journalist having started his career in local newspapers in the 1990s. Prior to joining Fleet News in 2008, he worked in the public sector as a media advisor and is currently news editor at Fleet News.
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