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Road crash victims remembered
A special service to remember those who
have died or been injured on our roads will be held in Liverpool on Sunday, 19
November 2017. Road Peace has organised the remembrance service in the concert room
of St George's Hall, part of the charity's World Day of Remembrance for Road
Traffic Victims.
It takes place, at 2pm, within the St George's Hall, following which guests will be
invited to the memorial for crash victims in neighbouring St John's Gardens
where 5 doves will be released to mark the 5 people who are killed each
day on our country's roads.
Pauline Fielding, from Liverpool, organises the annual event for Road Peace,
where she turned to for support after her son Andrew was killed in 1994 at the
age of just 18, in a crash caused by a driver who did not stay at the scene and
who was never traced. She is now a trustee of the charity and says the service,
which will be led by the Rector of Liverpool, Crispin Pailing, is a poignant way
for people to pay tribute as well as raising awareness of how dangerous driving
costs lives.
Pauline said:- "We invite all those who have been bereaved or injured in
road crashes, together with those who support us, to join us for this event. In
every death there are so many people affected and this service offers the
families and friends of those who have died or been injured the opportunity to
come together and remember their loved ones. It is also a chance for us to give
thanks to the emergency services for their support and to highlight this
unacceptable death toll and reflect on what can be done to prevent further
tragedies."
The Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Malcolm Kennedy, will attend the event.
He said:- "I am honoured to be part of this service which highlights the
importance of road safety by remembering those who have lost their lives or been
injured as a result of a crash. It's a poignant ceremony with a strong message
of support for those family and friends affected by this issue."
Chief Inspector Tony Jones said:- "Merseyside Police takes road safety
extremely seriously and we are committed to working with the wider community to
improve the safety of our roads and reducing the numbers of people killed and
injured each year.
Whist we do undertake roads policing enforcement we would rather concentrate on
educating all road users to make our roads a safer place and prevent the
collisions happening in the 1st place. To this end we work closely with local
authority colleagues from across the region to engage with and educate as many
people as we can.
Ultimately we want to encourage people to drive safely so that everyone can stay
as safe as possible on the roads and this means basic things such as staying off
your mobile phone when you are driving, wearing seat belts, adhering to speed
limits and obeying traffic lights.
Sunday, 19 November 2017 is the annual Road Peace ceremony, which is held in Liverpool
as part of the charity's World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, and
hopefully it will make people think about the way they drive. There are no
excuses for dangerous behaviour whilst driving; please think safety 1st and give
some thought as to what the cost could be to your or someone else's family
member if you don't."
Refreshments will be served in St George's Hall following the service, which has
been sponsored this year by serious injury specialists Slater and Gordon
Lawyers.
Carol Hopwood, a lawyer at the Liverpool branch said:- "Road Peace works
tirelessly to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on our roads,
which tragically still stands at thousands every year. The charity also provides
essential support to victims and their families, whose lives have been
devastated as a result of what are often completely avoidable incidents.
Slater and Gordon is proud to sponsor this service of remembrance, which is so
important to so many people, and to support the work of Road Peace in making our
roads safer for everyone."
The event in Liverpool is 1 of many taking place across the globe as part of
Road Peace's World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. It was 1st
introduced in 1993 and quickly spread to other European countries before being
adopted by the United Nations in 2005.
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