23.12.09 The Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership, Gloucestershire Constabulary, the 29 Regiment Royal Logistics Corp and Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue have been working together to deliver an important Christmas message. On December 15, the Regiment held an information morning to make soldiers aware of the dangers and consequences of drink driving, as part of the countywide Christmas campaign.

During the morning the soldiers were given presentations by Tracey Wilson from Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue, PC Simon Ross from Gloucestershire Constabulary and Garry Handley from the Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership. Using the theme of Christmas past, present and future they conveyed the importance of the drink drive campaign’s key message, ‘none for the road’, by discussing their personal experiences of working at the scene of a road traffic collision caused by drink driving, the effect this has on them and the impact on those involved and their friends and families.

Garry said; “When we arranged to visit the regiment we discovered something rather poignant that emphasised the importance of the drink drive campaign’s message to the soldiers and everyone involved. We discovered that 29 Regiment consists of just over 400 people, which is almost identical to the number of people that were killed in drink drive road collisions last year. It was shocking to look at such a large group of people and think that the size of the group replicated that of all the lives lost. This really highlighted the important role that we all play in keeping the county’s roads safe by driving responsibly and this is why we are urging the whole community to take heed of the ‘none for the road’ message in this year’s Christmas drink drive campaign.”

15.12.09 Many parents will be buying their children bikes for Christmas and are being asked to consider more than just the style, size and colour.

The road safety partnership ask that parents should take into account the following points:

• Choose your child’s  bike with care and get advice from a good dealer
• Buy them a cycle helmet that is the right size, that they like and they will wear
• Train them in basic cycle control away from the road
• Teach them good road sense by setting a good example
• Cycle along with your child in front of you, that way you can see them, talk to them and protect them from following traffic
• Ensure they take part in an organised Cyclist Training Scheme. Ask your school for details.
• Whatever the pressures, don’t let them out on their own until you are certain they can cope
• Make sure they are always easily seen and wear bright, high visibility clothing
• Enjoy cycling with your child – it’ll make all the difference

15.12.09 Gloucestershire County Council is undertaking a consultation exercise as part of the development of the next Local Transport Plan to ask what priorities people want to see the Council focus on in the years ahead. If you want to help define future priorities this is a way to put your views forward – via  a short questionnaire. Follow the link to the Council’s web page “Get Talking Transport”, and at the bottom of the page is a link called “How do I take part?”. The section most relevant to the Partnership is entitled, “Health and Road Safety”. http://www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/index.cfm?articleid=95796

8.12.09- Kelly, 26 from Gloucester, crashed her car after misjudging a junction. She caused injury to herself, wrote off her car, and was convicted of drink driving. Kelly helped to launch our annual drink driving campaign today and said: “I’d had a few drinks but because I’d eaten and quite a bit of time had passed, I thought I would have been all right to drive home. I was wrong.”

“I have to rely on lifts to and from work and even had to move home because my house was to far from a bus stop. The gym, the cinema and the shops are all much harder to get to. I’ve lost friends over it. This campaign is important because it sends home the message that a drink drive conviction can affect your whole life.”