Employers are encouraged to sign up for Road Safety Week 2020 (4-10 May), and join hundreds of communities, schools and organisations running activities to raise awareness of road safety issues.

Brake, the road safety charity, which coordinates the event, is encouraging employers to go to www.roadsafetyweek.org.nz/organisations and register for a free action pack to help them raise awareness and promote safer road use to staff, contractors and the wider community.

To help give employers tips and ideas on how organisations of any size or type can get involved in Road Safety Week, the charity’s not-for-profit global campaign Global Fleet Champions is running a free webinar on Tuesday 28 April at 2pm. Global Fleet Champions aims to prevent crashes and reduce pollution caused by vehicles used for work purposes. Registration is available via the Road Safety Week website.

This year’s Road Safety Week, coordinated with the support of Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, and sponsored by QBE Insurance, has the theme ‘Step up for Safe Streets’. The Week will focus on how everyone can ‘step up’ and do their bit for road safety. There will be an emphasis on encouraging people to learn about, shout about and celebrate the design solutions that can enable everyone to get around in a safe and healthy way, every day. Organisations can choose to run their activities on this theme or any other road safety topic, according to their priorities.

Brake is encouraging employers to get involved by being leaders for safe and healthy journeys. They can do this by having robust policies and procedures in place to manage road risk. This means choosing the safest and least-polluting vehicles and maintaining them to manufacturer guidelines; choosing routes that use the safest roads and avoid places where people live; regularly assessing drivers’ fitness to drive; and monitoring all collisions and near-misses and investigating the cause. Employers are also being encouraged to enable staff to walk, cycle and use public transport wherever possible, to benefit their health and reduce the risk posed to others.

Road Safety Week has been inspiring people for nine years and is a great opportunity for employers, especially those with staff who drive for work, to develop and promote safe travel internally, raise awareness in their local community and link with other organisations to run road safety campaigns.

Brake is also urging organisations with staff who drive for work to make use of guidance from the Global Fleet Champions campaign in the run up to the Week to develop year-round fleet safety practices. Becoming a member is FREE, and gives you access to a range of fleet safety resources, events and news. Visit www.globalfleetchampions.org to sign up.

Organisations can also engage employee support for the cause by running an office fundraiser, such as holding a Bright Day, when everyone comes to work dressed brightly to draw attention to the vulnerability of pedestrians and cyclists, helping raise funds in aid of Brake’s support services for road crash victims. Go to www.brake.org.nz/fundraise for more.

Caroline Perry, Brake’s NZ Director said: “We believe it’s everyone’s human right to be able to get around in a safe and healthy way every day. With far too many people still being killed and seriously injured on our roads, this Road Safety Week we want everyone to “Step up for Safe Streets” and learn about, shout about and celebrate the amazing design-led solutions that can help us end this suffering and create a safe and healthy future for all.

“Employers can really take the lead on safe and healthy journeys and help get these vital messages out to drivers, families and young people, making a big difference to their local community. I would encourage anyone who hasn’t already registered to sign up now for their free action pack”

Notes for editors:
Brake is a national road safety charity that promotes road safety and campaigns against the carnage on New Zealand roads. It does this by running a number of initiatives including a service for fleet and road safety professionals. Brake coordinates national Road Safety Week each May. It is also fundraising to improve support for families bereaved and injured in road crashes. To support Brake, go to www.brake.org.nz. Support books for children and adults bereaved in road crashes are available for free to families by contacting Brake on info@brake.org.nz or 021 407 953.

Brake was founded in the UK in 1995, and now has domestic operations in the UK and New Zealand, and works globally to promote action on road safety.

Road crashes are not accidents; they are devastating and preventable events, not chance mishaps. Calling them accidents undermines work to make roads safer, and can cause insult to families whose lives have been torn apart by needless casualties.

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