FATAL ROAD deaths are on a second all-time low this year, since the inception of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960, with 63 deaths following last year’s record-breaking lowest-ever figure of 60 deaths.
Speaking at a press conference launching the 12th annual Road Safety Week, police chief Michalis Papageorgiou said that it was the police’s intention to return to last year’s low figures and even try and improve.
Traffic-related deaths have been on the decline since 1994 and a steady decreasing trend had characterised the last four years. The success has been widely credited to the low tolerance shown by the police force to wrongdoers, while traffic police have elevated the prevention of fatal road accidents to its number one priority.
At the centre of this year’s Road Safety Week, which started yesterday and runs until October 14, are children and their proper education in road safety. The event’s motto is “Road Safety…it’s not a game” and targets to inform children about road safety in a playful manner.
“Our emphasis on children is no coincidence, since they are the future of our society” said Papageorgiou.
Head of traffic police, Demetris Demetriou said that a big part of the police’s preventive strategy was the training and education of children and young people, because this laid the foundations for changing the country’s mentality towards driving.
“By investing in youth, we are teaching children proper road safety habits, with the hope that they will be carried on into adulthood” said Demetriou.
“This long-term policy constitutes the best measure to prevent fatal road accidents” he said.
The highlight of this year’s event was the launching of an internet road safety game, created on behalf of Laiki Insurance; one of the event’s key organisers.
The game is a plan of a neighbourhood with road signs and possible dangerous scenarios; such as children kicking a ball on the street. Children are to drive a car or a bicycle through the neighbourhood while respecting the road code. According to the selected difficulty, children are quizzed on questions concerning road safety and road signs in a restricted allocated time, while penalties are incurred for every mistake made.
The user’s scores will be entered into a competition for a Nintendo Dsi on December 31. The game is available at www.laikiinsurance.com and on the Cyprus Police’s webpage.
Laiki Insurance’s director, Andreas Stylianou called on all the parents to encourage their children to visit the webpage and play the game and hailed this action as a crucial tool for changing the culture of Cypriots with respect to driving.
Activities start today, Saturday with a ceremony at the Road Safety Park in Nicosia, where children will have the opportunity to learn some of the main road safety principles. There will also be a painting competition and a presentation of traffic police equipment, while a CD with a road safety song and story will also be distributed. Other activities include the handing out of fluorescent vests and other gadgets.
A €2,000 donation by Laiki Insurance and the money raised during the week will be exclusively donated to the children who lost their fathers in the recent Mari blast of July 2011.
