One third of traffic accidents involving children occur during the journey to or from school. The author reviews measures taken by other European countries to create safety zones around schools. In Britain whilst it is agreed that road safety is of prime importance, authorities are constantly under pressure to save money. The average cost of a single injury accident is L 5800 and comparisons are made with the cost of implementing modern safety devices which may be up to L 5000. Such an installation would clearly pay for itself. Twin amber flashing lights are seen to be particularly valuable to road safety as they can be seen from a distance and in all weathers. Technological advances are described, in particular the microtima time switch controller which can control the timing of such devices to take account of peak hours and holidays. How widely these could be used is discussed and consideration given to a possible statutory requirement to reduce speed and stop overtaking in response to such signals.
Samenvatting