Minister of Transport & Regulatory Affairs Walter Roban said the goal is to “introduce measures which will bring awareness, shape behavior and yield safer road conditions for all motorists”.Transport Control Department Road Safety Officer David Minors added: “Features of the plan include increased Bermuda Police Service presence throughout the island, introduction of Stop Light cameras, speed limit warnings, several targeted marketing campaigns focused on the causes of collisions, and curbing dangerous behaviors.
“Both the youth and adult education tiers include establishing a working group to develop/source road safety curriculum for the primary level, reviewing the existing Project Ride program, engaging the business community on road safety, and establishing a mandatory DUI education policy just to name a few.
“We will be hosting several town hall meetings to share the plan with the public, as well as conducting “street” interviews,” he added.
And there’s a Road Safety video competition to engage teenagers in the road safety equation.
The video competition for youth aged 13 to 18 years old will have teenagers produce a 30 second to 90 second video on the topic ‘Why is Road Safety Important?’. Videos must be submitted via email to bdaroadsafety@gmail.com, with your name, your age and a parent’s contact number.
Prizes will be awarded and the winning video will be used in future road safety campaigns. The deadline for video submissions is Friday, July 6th, 2018 so send in those videos!
Bermuda Road Safety Council Chairman Dennis Lister III fully endorsed the new plan.
“As driving habits on our roads have become increasingly more hazardous and collisions more frequent, it is imperative that we do all that we can to address the situation,” said Mr Lister.
“Changing driving habits is not an easy task; however, we must all commit to be part of this new shift in mind-set.”
He also noted that “education is a large component of the Road Safety Plan 2018.
“We understand that road safety education should start as early as possible. New road users will then be ably equipped with safe road habits. These habits will form behaviour and ensure a healthy respect for the roads.”
‘Operation Caution’ will be the “blueprint ” to follow and he encouraged members of the public to “come out to the town halls, get informed and be a part of the process to change our driving culture”.
On that note, Minister Roban said: “The issue of Road Safety is a consistent problem for the island of Bermuda.
“Thousands of road users annually are involved in avoidable traffic collisions due to speeding, drunk-driving, and carelessness on our roads.
“Without question, this Government is extremely concerned with the amount of road collisions that have occurred over the past few years,” he said.
“Just last year, one thousand two hundred and forty [1,240] road-traffic collisions were reported to the Bermuda Police Service, with 64 resulting in serious injury and 15 being fatal.
“With the introduction of the Road Safety Plan, it is our aim to introduce measures which will bring awareness, shape behavior and yield safer road conditions for all motorists.”
The Road Safety Plan 2018 features a 2-tiered approach:
- Phase 1 includes public awareness through a series of town hall meetings;
- And phase 2, which will be the substantive portion of the plan, seeks to curb unsafe road behaviors through the education of good road safety practices.
“This strategy includes input gathered from focus groups and stakeholders. We also researched other jurisdictions that have faced similar problems, said Mr Roban.
“Through the implementation of the Road Safety Plan 2018, it is our goal, as the Ministry of Transport and Regulatory Affairs and the Government of Bermuda, to create safer roads and a safer Bermuda.”
The town hall meetings will be held at:
- Western – Monday, June 25th, 2018 – Sandys Middle School
- Central – Wednesday, June 27, 2018 – Berkeley Institute
- Eastern – Thursday, June 28, 2018 – Penno’s Wharf
All meetings begin promptly at 7pm.
The “Street” Interviews will take place in the city of Hamilton Monday, July 2 – Wednesday, July 4th – just look out for the Chair and the camera if you want to share your views!
Your name, your age and a parent’s contact number must be included in the email. Prizes will be awarded, as well as the winning video will be used in future road safety campaigns. The deadline for video submissions is Friday, July 6th, 2018 so send in those videos!
Our thanks to Minister Roban, Minister Caines, Chairman Lister, the Ministry team, the entire TCD team and the members of the BRSC for their commitment to road safety. I look forward to seeing all of you Bermuda as we share the plan moving forward. Thank you.
