Locally-developed equestrian safety campaign goes national across Wales

An equestrian safety campaign originally launched in Carmarthenshire has now been made available to all 22 local authorities in Wales.

The campaign, which reminds drivers of their responsibilities when sharing road space with equestrian road users, has been made available nationwide by Road Safety Wales with support from the Welsh Government.

Teresa Ciano, chair of Road Safety Wales, said: “We are grateful to Carmarthenshire County Council for instigating a driver awareness campaign which can now be implemented across Wales, with the support of the Welsh Government.

“Our thanks also to the British Horse Society for providing invaluable data via the incident reporting section of their website, bhs.org.uk.

“This has helped ensure the advice can be located where most needed, at incident hotspot locations as well as on routes frequently used by the equestrian community.”

Cllr Edward Thomas, Carmarthenshire County Council, added: “I am delighted that this campaign, which was launched in Carmarthenshire last summer, is now being extended across Wales.

“It is important that drivers, particularly in more rural areas in Wales, are aware that there are likely to be horses on the road and that they treat them with respect by not driving too fast and giving them plenty of space.”

Julie James, the Welsh Government’s minister for climate change with responsibility for transport, said: “Motorists often need reminding of the dangers posed to horses and riders, particularly when driving on country roads during the holiday season and I am grateful to Road Safety Wales for introducing this very important campaign.”

Road Safety Wales is also encouraging the ongoing reporting of incidents and accidents in order to expand the knowledge base of equine-related events, via the free-to-use BHS Horse i app

Road Safety Wales says capturing more accurate data on the frequency and severity of incidents will assist in identify trends and can be used to more effectively highlight and address the risk faced by equestrian road users.