Welcome to Road Safety Wales
The election of Joy Smith (County Road Safety Officer for Neath Port Talbot CBC) as new chairperson comes at an exciting time for Road Safety Wales. The partnership, which embraces road safety professionals from across Wales has just launched a major initiative aimed at tackling the high rates of young drivers and passengers killed and injured on Welsh roads.
Joy Smith said, “Pass Plus Cymru is a driver training scheme aimed at providing young drivers with additional driving skills and experience to help reduce their risk of being involved in road traffic collisions. Of 130 drivers and passengers killed on Welsh roads in 2005, 59 were between the ages of 16 and 25, representing 45% of total deaths. Giving young people the opportunity to become better drivers is a key part of our efforts to make Welsh roads safer for everybody”.
Many of these fatalities were caused by simple driving errors made as a result of a lack of skills and experience, and Pass Plus Cymru has been developed to combat this problem. Newly elected Vice chairperson, Heather Lynne Jones (County Road Safety Officer for Gwynedd County Council) explained, “The scheme, an enhanced version of the Driving Standard Agency’s Pass Plus scheme, will involve an interactive three-hour theory session and a day of practical in-car training and will be available to anybody over the age of 17 in Wales, preferably within the first year of passing their driving test. As well as reducing the risk of a young driver being involved in a crash, taking part in the Pass Plus Cymru scheme will also allow participants to save money on car insurance premiums”.
Pass Plus Cymru courses are being heavily subsidised by all local authorities in Wales thanks to dedicated funding from the Welsh Assembly Government. The scheme is administered by MAC Driving Excellence. Drivers can book on a course by logging on to www.dragondriver.com and clicking on the Pass Plus Cymru logo.
