Leeds kids asked to pass on '˜slow down' message

Road safety charity Brake, who carried out the speed survey, also discovered more than a quarter breached the 20mph limit once a week or more.

Last week more than 50,000 UK children, aged two to seven-years-old, took part in Brake’s and Churchill Car Insurance’s annual Beep Beep! Day.

And 3,000 Yorkshire children were involved in the project last Wednesday, which engages little ones with road safety issues. A key part was encouraging them to pass on the ‘slow down’ message to their parents and the wider community.

Dave Nichols, community engagement manager at Brake, said: “All children have the right to play safely and live a healthy life without fear – rights that are universally recognised by the United Nations and world leaders. Yet, in the UK, one of the most developed countries in the world, our children are often denied these rights because of the lethal danger posed by fast traffic.

“That’s why, in the week when the UN asked people across the world to #SlowDown on roads, we called on UK drivers to take the lead in making roads safer for children – by driving at 20mph or less and taking more care in communities. The Beep Beep! Day project engages kids in this life-saving cause, helping them learn about road safety issues and, critically, inspire their parents and drivers to reduce danger on our roads, by actions such as slowing down.”

Brake’s sample from 2,000 drivers in Yorkshire and the Humber also discovered that three quarters think traffic is too fast in their neighbourhood for the safety of children on foot or bike. Research has found children cannot judge the speed of approaching vehicles travelling faster than 20mph, so many believe it is safe to cross when it is not. More than five children are seriously hurt or killed every day in the UK, with the majority, 80 per cent, being on foot or bicycle at the time.

HOW THE AGE GROUPS COMPARE

The SPEED survey by Brake and insurers Churchill also revealed that nationally nearly three-quarters of 25 to 34-year-olds are likely to drive at 25mph or more in a 20mph area.

But only 45 per cent of 55 to 64-year-olds say they would do so. And 61 per cent of men admitted to driving at those speeds compared to 43 per cent of women. Yet the 25 to 34 age bracket of drivers polled 83 per cent in terms of thinking that traffic travels are too fast in their community.

Steve Barrett, head of Churchill Car Insurance, said: “Too many children die or are seriously injured on our roads each week.”