Agenda item

6.1

The Committee received a report of the Director of Regeneration and Development Services which provided an overview of the South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership and the Education, Training and Publicity Action Plan, an update on road safety for children and young people in Sheffield over the past 10 years and resulting actions, and an overview of the ongoing work around 20 mph zones and the School Keep Clear review.

6.2

In attendance for this item were Dick Proctor (Transport Vision and Strategy Manager), Joanne Wehrle (Safer Roads Education Manager), Karen Vickers (Senior Road Safety Officer) and David Lawson (Senior Road Safety Officer).

6.3

The Committee were taken through the report by the officers and following this, Members made various comments and asked a number of questions, to which responses were provided as follows:-

·                It was recognised that some drivers did not regard speeding as a criminal offence and that this needed to be got across to them.  The speed awareness courses were useful in changing people’s attitudes towards speeding.

·                Parents, as well as children, were included in the early years sessions on road safety, with the aim being to make the child a safer pedestrian and to alert parents to the dangers of parking outside schools when dropping children off.

·                Members would be provided with a list of schools which were not engaging with road safety initiatives.

·                Officers were working with students at the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre in relation to young driver and rider safety.

·                Road safety activity was informed by the casualty data and priority was given to areas where the highest number of casualties lived.

·                In relation to parents dropping children off at school, drop-off zones had worked very well at certain schools.

·                Approximately 90% of primary schools attend Crucial Crew at the Lifewise Centre.  Year 6 pupils attended to receive a range of personal safety scenarios including a road safety scenario.

·                The reasons why children and young people in certain areas were more prone to accidents were complex, with issues such as housing, road layout and the culture of the community being significant.  Areas of high deprivation showed higher casualty rates.  In these areas, the peak in child pedestrian casualties was often shown to be earlier than in other areas, with children under 10 years of age being more prone to getting injured, as they were allowed to go out and travel independently from an earlier age.

·                The collision data collected by the Police did not show whether the people involved had a criminal record so it was difficult to show a link between road traffic collisions and criminal behaviour.  However, a study of fatal collisions in South Yorkshire had shown that those with a criminal record were more likely to be involved in fatal collisions.  Officers were to meet with the Youth Offending Service in Sheffield to discuss how road safety interventions could be delivered to those people who were at higher risk of criminal behaviour.

·                The Safer Roads Partnership already worked with over 300 approved driving instructors who delivered road safety messages.  It was suggested that engagement of young drivers aged 17-24 years could also be undertaken via car sales firms.

·                Officers were encouraged by the success of the Junior Road Safety Officer scheme, with 34 Sheffield schools participating, half of which were located in high priority areas.  It was important to extend this initiative across the City.

·                The use of mock trials had proved very effective in emphasising the seriousness of road safety to college students.

·                The two children aged 16 and under who were killed in road collisions in Sheffield in 2013 and 2014 respectively, attended different schools.

·                In relation to the School Keep Clear Review, schools were being given advice about park and stride initiatives, five minute walking zones and setting up agreements with nearby businesses to use their car parks. .

·                Details of the schools in the City which had a 40 mph speed limit on the roads outside them would be provided to the Policy and Improvement Officer for circulation to Committee Members.

·                The use of black box devices in cars was encouraged, particularly in the case of young drivers.

·                Pedestrian casualties peaked between 10-14 years and again between 17-24 years with some of these being alcohol related in the evenings and at weekends.

·                There was a spike in the statistics for the 60+ age group for pedestrian casualties.  The effects of an ageing population were beginning to be seen in the statistics and interventions were being developed as a result.

·                The information which was collected by Police following collisions did not attribute blame, so it was difficult to say how many young drivers were responsible for them. However, many collisions involving young drivers were single vehicle incidents.

·                Officers would be delivering sessions to students of the University Technical College in the next few months.

·                Information would be sent to the Policy and Improvement Officer for circulation to Committee Members on the proposal by Thurrock Council to allow teachers and parent volunteers to issue parking tickets outside schools.

·                In comparison with other authorities in the UK, South Yorkshire appeared to be somewhere in the middle.  An exercise had been undertaken which looked at other Safer Roads Partnership Plans and South Yorkshire seemed to be undertaking the same sort of interventions as those which came out best.  Road casualties across GB had gone up in all severity categories in 2014 whereas killed and seriously injured casualties in South Yorkshire in 2014 had reduced, thus bucking the national trend.

·                Officers would check on the effectiveness of the reported use of 3-D road markings in other countries in reducing pedestrian casualties.  In Sheffield, some bollards had been installed which had the appearance of children.

·                In relation to the School Keep Clear Review, officers were undertaking work with Parking Services, who were putting together a presentation to schools, with consideration being given to which schools to target.

6.4

RESOLVED: That the Committee:-

(a)       thanks the attending officers for their contribution to the meeting;

(b)       notes the contents of the report and responses to             questions;

(c)        congratulates the South Yorkshire Safer Roads Partnership on its achievements in the face of decreasing budgets;

(d)       notes the extensive range of interventions being delivered in Sheffield and across South Yorkshire to address road safety for children and young people; and

(e)       requests that officers consider what steps could be taken to encourage schools and colleges in the City to engage with the Council’s road safety initiatives, with the aim of reducing injuries to children and young people, including educating parents.