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THE GLEANER, THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 2017
H10
Road
Safety
Unit
‘Fostering a culture of
safety on our roads’
Targeting the Safety
Message
The Road Safety Unit intensified its
objective of promoting and advancing
road safety education in schools, com-
munities and various fora islandwide.
This has been done through the distri-
bution of literature, via video presen-
tations, displays, talks – all with a
view to reducing injury to life and limb
and worse – fatalities on our roads.
The Unit visited over 200 schools at
the primary and secondary levels
where students were taught proper
road safety usage. Interventions such
as these have seen an improvement in
children’s behaviour in the traffic envi-
ronment. Parishes visited include St
Elizabeth, St James, St Catherine, St
Ann, St Thomas, St Mary, Trelawny,
Clarendon, Kingston and St Andrew.
In addition to school visits, the Unit
promoted the road safety message to
the public by partnering with public
and private sector stakeholders in the
dissemination of the road safety mes-
sage. Among the entities with which
the Unit partnered were: the Social Development Commission (SDC), 4H Clubs; additionally the Unit had a presence at NDRC Drag
Racing Challenges, National Child Month Expos, churches, health conferences, expos targeting men and even on the party scene,
attending the popular ‘Dream Weekend’ to ensure that all Jamaicans were educated on how to keep themselves safe in the traffic envi-
ronment.
Data Analysis
The area of data collection was paramount in the analysis of traffic crashes for the Unit. The statistics reveal that numerous collisions
occur islandwide on an annual basis due to improper road usage, with motorcyclists and private motor vehicle drivers featuring promi-
nently in the ones that result in fatalities. The Unit also completed daily and weekly reports as well as a yearly report of the crashes in
Jamaica.
R
OAD
S
AFETY
T
RAINING
The Unit conducted many road safety
inspections in the past year. In addition,
emphasis was also placed on the training of
personnel to conduct crash investigation,
analysis and accident reconstruction; many
police officers received training in this
regard. This course has significantly
strengthened the road safety programme in
the country.