A film highlighting the dangers children face on their daily journey to school was released in conjunction with International Walk to School Day* on 7 October 2015.
Created by French film director Luc Besson in partnership with the FIA Foundation, and with the help of international road safety campaigners, ‘Save Kids’ Lives’ highlights the dangers facing young people as they strive to gain an education.
Save Kids’ Lives was the slogan for Global Road Safety Week 2015, which has received the backing of more than 800,000 signatures online.
Shot on location in South Africa and Paris, the film shows the dangers faced by children on their journey to school, whether caused by the lack of safe infrastructure in the townships of South Africa or the heavy traffic of a major European city.
According to the World Health Organisation, 500 children are killed each day in road crashes globally.
The film has been produced as part of the FIA’s ‘Action for Road Safety’ campaign which was launched in support of the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety.
Jean Todt, president of the FIA and UN’s special envoy for road safety, hopes that the film will act as “a shocking wake-up call” and help raise awareness of a road safety crisis by delivering a potent visual message.
Jean Todt said: “Children are the most vulnerable in our society and the poorest nations are by far the hardest hit. We must do everything in our power to halt this scourge and this film can act as a rallying call.
“We must provide children with good road safety education so they are aware of the risks and that no family ever has to suffer the tragic loss of a child.
“Every child should have the right to a safe journey whether travelling to school, home or anywhere else.”
If you watch the real incidents from 2:23 onwards, it is apparent how little concentration, awareness, anticipation, observation and control your average driver has. Whilst the pedestrians in those incidents should not have been in the c/way at all or even attempting to cross, the drivers could have avoided contact if not for their complacency. If you read Duncan McCillop’s idea for the alternative road safety video re-country road driving elsewhere, he has the right idea. Again,’no surprise – no accident’.
Hugh Jones, Cheshire
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The movement aims its requests to governments to improve roads and the safety margins thereon, and that is commendable. But the film shows examples of dangerous crossing of roads in Africa, supplemented by actual fatalities as seen on CCTVs. The single incident staged in Paris shows a child running after a loose ball, and presumed impact. The 500 children globally covers an awful lot of countries where road safety is determined by the education of pupils in crossing said roads, in behaving in a responsible manner towards their actions and surroundings. Would any of us condone our children to cross a busy motorway in the UK or any other European country?
In the interview with Jean Todt it is claimed he knows what is needed to be done – but he does not say what that is, nor is it hinted at in any way throughout.
Clearly the African examples need overhead or underground crossing places, and questions asked as to why these children need to cross such a busy dual carriageway at all – unless they are playing ‘chicken’.
The film has impact – but who is it aimed at? And what are they likely to do about it?
Derek Reynolds, Salop.
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