Safe Drive Stay Alive: 5,000 Oxfordshire students to attend road safety event
Five thousand Oxfordshire sixth-formers and college students are set to attend a special event to learn about the devastating impact of being involved in a car crash.
Oxfordshire young drivers (aged 17-24) make up around one in eight drivers on the road but are almost twice as likely to be involved in road traffic incidents that result in death or injury.
In 2017, 19 percent (nearly 1 in 5) of all road traffic accident casualties were sustained in an accident involving at least one car being driven by a person aged 17 to 24.
When including all vehicles (such as pedal cycles), 26 percent (1 in 4) of all road accident casualties in the county were sustained in an accident involving at least one vehicle being driven or ridden by someone aged 17 to 24.
Safe Drive Stay Alive has been organised by the Road Safety team in Oxfordshire County Council’s Fire and Rescue Service – which exists to educate people on how to stay safe on the roads.
At the event at the King’s Centre, emergency service personnel, young survivors, and parents who have lost a child will tell real-life stories of the devastation caused by dangerous driving. Stories will be brought to life on stage to educate young people on the importance of being safe on the road.
Andy Ford, Road Safety Manager, Oxfordshire County Council Fire and Rescue Service, said: “Poor choices as a driver, such as driving a bit too fast for the road conditions, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or being distracted by a text message can have terrible consequences.
“All of these factors increase the risk of a collision, and if you’re not wearing a seatbelt the odds of being killed or suffering life changing injuries increases enormously.
“As well as a message for those in the audience, we would like to remind parents and carers that they have a part to play as role models. By the time young people begin to learn to drive, many of their attitudes are already formed, based on what they’ve observed as a passenger.”
A dramatic and sobering show
A video production will show a scenario of a group of young people on a night out whose car is involved in a serious crash. As the on-screen drama unfolds, members of the emergency services that are featured in the film step out onto the stage.
The film is then paused while emergency service workers, parents and affected individuals talk about:
Their real-life experiences of road collision scenes,
What action they would take if the film collision was a real-life experience,
The reactions of the driver and passengers,
The medical implications,
How the trauma of a road collision affects them personally.
Safe Drive Stay Alive will take place at the King’s Centre, Osney Mead, Oxford, OX2 0ES between Wednesday 21 – Friday 23 November. It is part of the county council’s Thriving Communities initiative.
For further information about Safe Drive Stay alive, visit the website www.safedrive.org.uk
About Safe Drive Stay Alive
Safe Drive Stay Alive is a partnership between Oxfordshire County Council Fire and Rescue Service, Hampshire Constabulary and Thames Valley Police Joint Roads Policing Unit, South Central Ambulance NHS Trust, and Road Safety Officers from councils across the whole Thames Valley area.