BEAR Scotland is supporting the road safety charity, Brake’s Road Safety Week campaign which runs this week, 19–25 November 2023.

Road Safety Week is the UK’s biggest road safety event and this year its theme is Speeding. The theme emphasises that every life matters, and every death or injury on roads is preventable. The campaign informs the public about how they too can play a part in keeping the roads safe.

Throughout the week, BEAR Scotland is sharing stories of the measures it has put in place to keep Scotland’s busiest trunk roads safe and reduce speeding across its North West and South East networks.

In the last year, some of BEAR Scotland’s road safety projects have included:

• An innovative motorcycle safety campaign, using scientific research to improve riders’ behaviour at bends.
• Working with Transport Scotland and The Highland Council on the roll-out of the 20mph speed limit across built up areas in the Highlands.
• Ongoing road safety improvements on the A9, including installing new safety barriers with extra protection for motorists on the A924 Pitlochry south junction. We also replaced the existing ramp terminals at the junction to improve road safety.

Iain Murray, BEAR Scotland’s Managing Director, said:

“Road safety is a top priority at BEAR Scotland. It’s everyone’s right to arrive home safely after travelling or working on Scotland’s roads. The projects we’ve delivered in the last year show our commitment to this. Through working with Transport Scotland and engaging with the public to find out what concerns them, we have been able to deliver road safety improvements which will make a real difference to drivers’, cyclists’ and pedestrians’ experiences.

“Our teams are a fundamental asset in keeping our busiest trunk roads safe and they also work closely with the emergency services, as well as our control rooms. They are always ready to react when a new report comes in.

“Unfortunately our workers are often at risk of serious injury or death due to dangerous driving – including speeding – near roadworks. We’re calling for everyone to slow down and obey the speed limit, and help make sure our workers get home safely to their families at the end of their shift.”