‘Scrutiny panel’ formed to oversee Knowledge Centre

A ‘scrutiny panel’ has been formed to oversee the content and applications from organisations wishing to become members of the Road Safety Knowledge Centre, which has been developed by Road Safety GB and is supported by Colas*.

The following organisations are represented on the scrutiny panel: AIRSO, CIHT, DfT, DOE Northern Ireland, IAM, IRSO, PACTS, RAC Foundation, Road Safety GB, RoadSafe, Road Safety Wales and RoSPA. An invitation has also been extended to Road Safety Scotland.

The Road Safety Knowledge Centre (Knowledge Centre) went live in September 2010 and replaces the Road Safety Time Bank. There are currently (2/5/11) 1,770 subscribers and 374 member organisations. Subscription for individuals is free of charge and open to all. Membership is intended for organisations professionally involved in road safety and likely to be producing information suitable for inclusion in the Knowledge Centre.

There are currently 983 items of information listed in the Knowledge Centre, covering education, training, publicity, engineering and enforcement initiatives from across the UK, along with more than 250 road safety reports and research papers. Items are also listed by road user type (cyclists, motorcyclists, pedestrians etc) and road safety issue (drink driving, speed, distraction etc).

Alan Kennedy, chair of Road Safety GB, said: “We are absolutely delighted with the progress that the Knowledge Centre has made to date, in terms of the number of road safety professionals and others using the service and the amount of important and valuable material it contains.

“The formation of this scrutiny panel will ensure that items and organisations listed in the Knowledge Centre are there on merit. We are delighted that so many respected organisations have agreed to be represented on the panel – this is further confirmation of the Knowledge Centre’s growing reputation as an important resource for road safety professionals in the UK and further afield.”

*Footnote: The Knowledge Centre is sponsored by Colas, which operates throughout the UK as a service provider to the highways and airfields sectors. Colas provides a complete highway maintenance and construction service for local authorities and the Highways Agency. As part of the international Colas Group, it has access to the knowledge and resources of one of the world’s leading road construction and maintenance organisations.