Cyclists, pedestrians, traffic lights and bad weather. Sam Chambers and Freya Bray of Newport know these can all affect your driving ability. Both won first place in a hazard perception competition run by South Wales Fire & Rescue Service at Coleg Gwent.
Sam (19) and Freya (17) demonstrated how important it is to be aware of your surroundings in order to stay safe when driving, when the fire service visited the College as part of Brake’s national Road Safety Week in November. Not only did their keen eye for road safety win them a sat nav presented by the South Wales Fire & Rescue Service (pictured), it helped Freya pass her driving theory test a few days later.
The competition replicated the format of the hazard perception test that learner drivers have to pass alongside their practical test to get their licence. The students had to identify hazards in a series of video clips showing driving situations involving other road users shot from a car driver’s point of view – from driving in the dark, to staying safe on country lanes.
Over 150 students at Usk Campus and 150 at City of Newport Campus had a go at identifying hazards – anything that will cause the driver to change speed, direction or stop, with Freya and Sam being among those able to spot all hazards and gain full marks in the test.
Freya, an equine student at Usk Campus, was delighted with her prize and can’t wait to use it when she’s passed her driving test, which she’s hoping will be very soon: “Getting extra practice and guidance from the fire service on how to spot hazards certainly helped me pass my theory test and has motivated me to book my practical test and I’m hoping to be on the roads, safely, as soon as I can. The sat nav will make getting to places easier rather than getting distracted and putting me, and other road users, at risk.”
The fire service’s Road Safety Team also showed the students a video presentation, which Sam, a motor vehicle student at City of Newport Campus, says certainly got the students thinking: “It was visually hard hitting as it showed the results of road accidents in situations we could relate to. The team also told us about ‘real life’ incidents they’d attended in local areas we know which made possible accidents feel much closer to home.”
Road Safety Advisor for South Wales Fire & Rescue Service Katie Allen commented: “It was great to see so many students at the College having a go at our hazard perception competition we were running during National Road Safety week. The Ford Focus ST we use as our road safety initiative has been kitted out with a wide screen TV and an Xbox Kinnect and sound system which allows us to interact with young people who fall into our ‘at risk’ age group of 17-25 year olds.
“The aim of our presentation and road safety vehicle is to educate young drivers on the consequences of irresponsible driving. Congratulations to all who took part.”
Head of Road Safety for Wales Fire & Rescue Service Neil Brown congratulated the students: “I am delighted that Coleg Gwent worked with us to put on this event during such an important week in the Road Safety Calendar. By allowing us to make an attendance with our staff and vehicles, we were able to carry out presentations to hundreds of young people allowing us to highlight the fact to them that they fall within one of our most ‘at risk’ target groups. This in turn gave us the opportunity to impart a number of tips encouraging them to drive in a safe manner.
“It was extremely rewarding to see so many young people taking part and contributing to an enthusiastic response.”
