1 March 2008

Wealden Road Safety Initiative

East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service, Sussex Police and the Safer Wealden Partnership are continuing to work together on a road safety initiative, which hopes to reduce the number of road traffic collisions in the Wealden area.

The initiative took place on the 28th February and involved East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service firefighters working closely with Sussex Police, to pull over motorists who were not wearing a seatbelt, using their mobile phone, or were using excessive speed. A total of 75 motorists were stopped between the hours of 9.00am and 1.00pm.

Those that were pulled over were then given the opportunity to receive a fixed penalty ticket or attend a 15-minute presentation at fire stations in the Wealden district.

The high impact presentation involved a series of hard-hitting road safety clips combined with a talk from firefighters who have had first hand experience of attending road traffic incidents in the Wealden area.

Previous road safety initiatives that took place in conjunction with the Safer Wealden Partnership before Christmas have led to a 50% reduction in alcohol related road traffic collisions in Wealden district.

Matt Elder, Station Manager commented, "East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service are committed to improving road safety and reducing the number of road traffic collisions across the County. Working in partnership with Sussex Police and the Safer Wealden Partnership allows us to target road users more effectively, and potentially reduce the number of people who are killed or seriously injured in the Wealden district area."

The Safer Wealden Partnership includes representatives from many relevant authorities including East Sussex County Council Road Safety Team, Wealden District Council, East Sussex Downs & Weald, Hastings & Rother Primary Care Trust, Sussex Police and East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service.