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PRESS RELEASE

Media Relations Dept.
Police Headquarters
P.O. Box HM 530
Tel: (441) 299-4249/4291/4321
Fax: (441) 299-4322
E-mail: Police Media Relations


 
Date:Thursday, July 11,2013
Distribution: All Media

Working Together to Improve Driving Behaviour

Bermuda Road Safety Council Chairman Carlton Crockwell – ‘Think, Choose & Live.’ On behalf of the Road Safety Council and its partners, which include the Bermuda Police Service, we take this opportunity to thank you for supporting our campaign ‘Think, Choose & Live.’ As you think, choose and live while you are driving, let’s remember we have had a number of serious and fatal injuries that have reached alarming proportions in January and February 2013. And in response to these injuries, it was decided that a collective action was required to reduce the carnage on our roads.

One of the Council’s mandates is education. As a result, we decided to educate the motoring public. As such you have heard various radio ads, seen television ads and press releases encouraging members of the public to think, choose and live while driving. I must emphasize that our campaign for 2013 and beyond is that we want our motoring public to think, choose and live. However we felt that a collective partnership would achieve the best results and so this year we have worked together with the Bermuda Police Service.

In late February of this year, our partner the Bermuda Police Service increased the visibility of their patrols of the roads. The police presence has acted as a deterrent against unsafe and reckless behavior on the roads. The police service also reintroduced their Selective Traffic Enforcement Programme (STEP) and we believe because of this, we have seen the number of serious collisions come down from where they were.

We the Road Safety Council would like to emphasize that enforcement is important. We believe the Bermuda Police Service is doing just that. We believe education is important. We at the Bermuda Road Safety Council along with the Bermuda Police Service are doing that.

Our campaigns over the last few months have shown that people are now starting to understand some things about the roads. It’s our objective in the next few months to get around to as many people as possible to teach them the rules of the road and to educate them on how they should be driving and how they should not be driving.

With that we say thank you to the Bermuda Police Service for re-introducing STEP and we support you 100%. We also would like to thank those in the public; it’s very important that we thank those behind the wheel who have slowed down and are adhering to the rules of the road. Once again, thank you Bermuda Police Service and the public.

Inspector Phil Lewis – On behalf of the Bermuda Police Service, I would like to thank the Road Safety Council Chairman for all the support you have given to us and continue to give to us. We would like to emphasize, in partnership with the Bermuda Road Safety Council, that our focus is not only on enforcement - although we are charged with that responsibility; we also work very closely on the educational side. We think that it is very important that education is at the forefront; education in the context of trying to alter behaviours of driving on the roads. And if we can achieve that objective, I think we are well on the way to maintaining the downward trend of collision figures since the beginning of the year.

The following represents STEP statistics from March 1st to July 3rd 2013.

  • Tickets Issued for Speeding: 1,406
  • Tickets Issued for Driving Without Due Care: 76
  • Tickets Issued for Dangerous Driving: 13
  • Tickets Issued for Driving While Using a Cell Phone: 635
  • Tickets Issued for Disobeying Traffic Signs: 971
  • Tickets Issued for Helmet Offences: 108

In addition:

  • From January 1st – July 3rd 2013 there were 129 people arrested on suspicion of impaired driving.

NUMBER OF ROAD COLLISIONS
June 2013
Year to Date June 2012  Year to Date
Fatal
0
5 1
2
Injury
80
384 88 419
Damage Only
93
481
91 531
TOTAL 173 870 180 952
NUMBER OF PERSONS INJURED
     
Fatal 0 5 1 2
Serious 14 67 5 57
Serious (Intensive Care Unit) 2 9 1 10
Slight 83 376 97 418
TOTAL 99 457 104 487
MAIN CAUSES OF COLLISIONS
Entering Main Road Carelessly 8 55
8 58
Following Too Close
15 90
12 77
Inattention
50 250
50 299
Inexperienced
21 73 26 94
Overtaking Improperly
14
60
11 57
Reversing Carelessly 9 27 7 31
MISCELLANEOUS STATISTICS  
Fail to Stop
19 75 17 86
First Aid Rendered by Police
8 53 17 63
Pedal Cycles Involved
4 18
5 19
Pedestrians Involved
3 19 6 25
Children Involved
6 22 3 20
Animals Involved 0 8 1 4
SINGLE VEHICLE STATISTICS
Four or More Wheeled Vehicles 14
95 13 89
Motor Cycles/Scooters
17 81
16 76
Auxiliary Cycles
2 21 8 27
Livery Cycles 16
44 14 45
Pedal Cycles 1
7 0 3
COLLISIONS RESULTING IN ARREST FOR IMPAIRED DRIVING        
  11 43 6 37

 

PERCENTAGE ANALYSIS OF VEHICLES INVOLVED June 2013 LAST MONTH
Private Cars 121 40.1% 143 47.8%
Motor Cycles/Scooters
81 26.8% 68 22.7%
Auxiliary Cycles
15
5%
13 4.4%
Livery Cycles
25
8.3% 21 7%
All Trucks 41 13.5% 31 10.4%
Taxis
12 4% 17 5.7%
Public Service Vehicles
3 1% 4 1.3%
Pedal Cycles 4
1.3%
2 0.7%
AGES OF PERSONS INVOLVED   June 2013  
Up to 15 years 6 2%    
16 to 20 years
28 9.3%
   
21 to 30 years 57 18.9%
   
31 to 40 years 59 19.5%    
41 to 50 years 49
16.2%
   
51 to 65 years 79 26.2%    
66 years and over
24
7.9%    
FEMALES INVOLVED June 2013 Year to Date    
Locals 101 558    
Visitors 17 37    
MALES INVOLVED June 2013 Year to Date    
Locals 175 892    
Visitors 9 41    


All incidents are under investigation. Police are appealing to members of the public who have witnessed these incidents or may have information pertaining to them to contact their respective Police Station, Police Headquarters at 295-0011 or the confidential Crimestoppers Hotline on 1 (800) 623-8477.

Public & Media Relations Department