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weecounty
Friday 27.1.12
Hard hitting road safety event aimed at young drivers By Michelle Henderson
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new hard hitting road safety event that will be viewed by more than 4,000 teenagers has been announced to take place at Stirling University. Central Scotland Road Safety Partnership and other rescue services have organised the event that will take place on Monday, January 30th. The event will see emergency service personnel being joined by victims of road traffic collisions along side their families. With an expected audience of more than 4,000 teenagers, the organisers hope that they will learn to drive slower and safer on the roads across Scotland. The week long scheme will
Access Forum AGM date set
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he Clackmannanshire Access Forum will hold its Annual General Meeting in February. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, February 28 at Alloa Town Hall. The Forum was created in 2001. It provides independent advice to the Council and other bodies about access rights, rights of way and core paths. Members include representatives of community organisations, recreational users, national agencies, land managers and the Council. The Annual General Meeting will report on the work of the Forum and its achievements in 2011 and elect Forum members to each of the stakeholder groups. This will be followed by two presentations, one on the Ochils Landscape Partnership and the other on the evolution of access in Scotland. The presentations will be made by Dennis Toon from OLP’s Executive Committee and former Access Forum chair Alistair Lawson. All will be made welcome. Doors open at 6.30pm and the Forum AGM is from 7-8.30pm in the town hall’s main hall. If you will be attending the meeting or, if you require further information about it, please contact the Council’s Access and Countryside Projects Officer on 01259 452409 or email mdean@ clacks.gov.uk
let teenagers hear from young people that have been involved in terrifying collisions and will see reenactments of those events. They will also listen to stories from bereaved families and emergency service personnel, who have been apart of these incidents. In 2011 alone, Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Services attended a total of 116 road traffic collisions with a total of 9 deaths, 111 serious injures ad 28 serious casualties. The worrying statistic form this being that these people were aged between 17 and 25. Group Manager for Community Safety at Central Scotland Fire and Rescue Service, Gordon Pryde, said: “Safe Drive Stay Alive is an innovative partnership event, targeted towards young people that are statistically more likely to be involved in a road traffic collision. “Through this event, people that have been directly affected by a road traffic collision have the opportunity to share their very serious and long lasting experiences of irresponsible driving. The message we are sending out through this event is hard hitting but we want young people to remember it and it could help save their lives.” The Head of Specialist Support Services at Central Scotland Police, Chief Inspector Brian Johnston also made a statement saying: “’By attending a performance of Safe Drive Stay Alive, young people will see for themselves just how devastating the effects of a road crash are. “Young people account for 12% of the driving population but sadly they are also involved in 31% of all road crashes and this is wholly
unacceptable. Safe Drive Stay Alive will highlight the dangers young drivers and their passengers face every time they get into a car and make them aware of their responsibilities. “Young people should never be afraid to speak up and get out if they feel that the person driving the car is not safe but also they should be aware that by causing a distraction they can be the cause of a crash.’’ Murray McEwan, Community Development Officer for the Scottish Ambulance Service, said: “Ambulance crews experience firsthand the tragic circumstances that result from taking unnecessary risks while driving. This campaign has a profound effect on those who see it and will help to save young lives.” On Thursday, February 2nd, the event will be open to all young drivers and their parents, along with general public, with the aim being to show how effective the event is
and the impact this has on young drivers. The event will start at 7pm and finish about 8.30pm. To book tickets to this FREE event phone the MacRobert Arts Centre Box Office on 01786 466666.
Former Provost speaks out By Alison Mann
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he former provost has spoken about his new role as shadow spokesperson for sustainability. Councillor Derek Stewart spoke out to try to put an end to negative spin he believes surrounded the former Labour administration. He criticised the SNP description of the commissioning of a Traffic Impact Assessment as “75k for a car parking survey.” He said: Whilst car parking is a component of any Traffic Impact Assessment, the survey was commissioned to evaluate the impact of the increased traffic need for the new Forth Valley Campus, and the overflow from Kilncraigs as more council staff move to the building from other buildings to lower Council costs. Accident prevention; the safety of
both pedestrians and vehicles was paramount to Clackmannanshire Council and the then Labour administration.” He added: “On a personal note, I find it slightly ironic that Councillor Carrick, when a member of the Labour Administration, was the most prominent supporter of introducing car parking charges along with his independent counterpart Craig Holden, who also voiced his support for these charges in Alloa at the last budget. “Now that both of these councillors are supporting the new SNP administration, I hope that this does not mean that we will need to continue to fight to stop any unfair and unwanted charges being introduced. “I would like to assure the residents of Clackmannanshire, that should we return a Labour Administration in May, we will continue our policy of ‘Free Parking in Clackmannanshire.”
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Former Provost Derek Stewart The former Provost also thanked local people for their support, saying: “I have been completely overwhelmed by the sheer number of good wishes I have received from all parts of the county, all walks of life and all political persuasions. “It’s good to know that people saw me as a non-partisan figure working for the good of our community.”
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