South Wales Fire and Rescue Service is supporting Road Safety Week 2023

South Wales Fire and Rescue Service (SWFRS) is proudly supporting the UK’s biggest annual road safety event, Road Safety Week (19 – 25 November 2023)

Organised by Brake, the road safety charity, the theme of this year’s Road Safety Week is asking for us to ‘talk about speed.’ Every year, thousands of schools, organisations, and communities get involved in the campaign to share important road safety messages.

This year, the campaign is asking us to:

THINK about how we can all use roads safely to protect ourselves and other road users
UNDERSTAND how safe roads can enable everyone to make safe and healthy journeys
REMEMBER road traffic collision victims and share their stories
TALK about speed and understand why it’s important to stick to limits

Why is Road Safety Week so important?

Every 22 minutes, someone is seriously injured or killed on a UK road.

This is why it is vital that road users refresh their understanding of what is considered safe or dangerous driving.

Road Safety Week serves as a reminder for drivers to be aware of any hazards on the road, check their car to ensure it’s safe to drive and the effects of driving whilst not fully alert.

SWFRS Road Traffic Collision Reduction Manager and Station Manager, Nev Thomas, said:

“Between 1 April 2022 and 31 March 2023, SWFRS attended 848 road traffic collisions.

SWFRS plays a crucial role in raising awareness of road safety across South Wales, and throughout the week we will be working closely with our partners to spread and promote the message of safe roads for all.

To mark Road Safety Week, SWFRS’s Road Safety Team will be conducting a number of engagement, education and intervention events, with the aim of helping to make Welsh Roads safer.

By utilising our resources, we aim to save lives, prevent accidents and injuries, and reduce the number of incidents in the areas we protect.”

The effects of 30mph to 20mph

SWFRS supports Welsh Government’s legislative changes to reduce speed limits on restricted roads from 30mph to 20mph, as a means of reducing road traffic fatalities and serious injuries in our communities, including in built-up areas where people and vehicles mix closely.

It is also hoped the decrease in the speed limit will reduce the number of serious incidents our Firefighters will attend and increase their psychological safety from experiencing these traumatic incidents.

For a number of years, our Road Safety Team, which is a standalone unit and not drawing upon frontline rescue resources, has worked closely with partner agencies and emergency service colleagues, to engage with and educate members of the public on the changes and the benefits of driving at lower speeds, as well as the dangers of the Fatal 5.

For more information on our role in the change, please click here.

Useful Resources

Winter Weather Driving
Vehicle Safety Checks
To sign up for Road Safety Week, please visit: https://www.brake.org.uk/road-safety-week