OPP officials and county staff have unveiled a new series of videos aimed at preventing accidents and deaths on roads.
County communications manager Andrea Ravensdale said the series, titled “Predictable Preventable Drive safe on our roads,” is targeted at accidents that are avoidable and will deal with ways to avoid collisions with Mennonite buggies. The $5,900 joint project is shared between the local OPP and the county.
“It will be a Wellington version so other detachments can use the videos,” Ravensdale said of the intent of the videos. “It’s aggressive driving, distracted driving, impaired driving and we also looked at Mennonite road accidents.”
The county was originally approached about the video series by retired OPP Sergeant Susan Gray, Ravensdale said.
“In January Susan (Gray) worked to create road safety videos for Wellington County.”
The series will also include statistics provided by the OPP which indicate there are about 20,000 Mennonite buggies on provincial roadways with about 800 travelling throughout the county.
In early June a car collided with a buggy near Clifford injuring a Mennonite couple and eight of their children.
Ravensdale said during preparation for the Mennonite segment of the video she learned a few things about roadside hazards that could spook a horse, including placement of blue boxes along roadways.
“The blue box has to be about a meter off the road,” she said.
For the Mennonite segment the film crew was advised by a Mennonite living near Dorking about the hazards they encounter.
Statistics on aggressive driving show it is the leading cause of serious accidents.
“Most drivers killed in speed related crashes are the ones driving,” statistics show.
Distracted driving statistics show half of all drivers are still answering calls behind the wheel and people who text and drive are 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash.
Province wide impaired driving continues to be a problem on highways with provincial statistics showing each year 12,700 drivers are convicted for drinking and driving offences, costing the province roughly $3 billion annually.
In 2012 the county registered 65 alcohol related collisions and 191 alcohol related charges, something OPP locally have targeted particularly during their holiday RIDE (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere) campaigns.
Ravensdale said the county video series is separate from concerns raised by the recently-created county Safe Communities committee, although there are similarities to education programs the two groups want to promote and offer. Ravensdale said the video will be available on YouTube via wellington.ca and opp.ca.
