Let's be safe when we're out walking, riding, jogging or driving. Here are some tips to keep you and everyone else safe.
We encourage drivers to ask themselves “What are you missing?”. We want to increase awareness of other road users and highlight that we're all sharing the road - car drivers, cyclists, children walking, scooters and more.
Walkers, cyclists and joggers should also consider how they make sure they are visible to drivers. We all need to ensure children can be easily seen on the road whether they are riding, waiting for the school bus or crossing a pedestrian crossing.
When you quickly scan the road, your brain only picks up what it is expecting to see, take a second look. Look and think ahead when driving, if you're about to come into sun strike, or a section of shading you may not see the child waiting to cross at the pedestrian crossing or the cyclist heading up the hill into the light.
Be comfortable in bright clothing, backpacks/covers, reflective wrist bands, and bike lights when out walking and riding. It could be the difference between being seen or not. Check out highlights from Consumer's Be Safe B Seen article about bike lights and reflective material. Lights and reflective clothing can be purchased from a number of Taranaki retailers. If you are a regular commuter by bike, we have high visibility bag covers available at the NPDC Civic Centre on request.
Show courtesy and respect to all road users.
Even the smallest of mistakes on the road can cost us our life, or someone else's.
People, especially children, can be unpredictable.
Never assume you have been seen. Make good decisions when crossing the road.
We work directly with Taranaki primary schools and kura. The Be Seen/Tīaho Mai school campaign was first run in 2018, aimed at students, their school and whānau. The key message for students is to be seen on our roads, when out walking, riding, skating, scootering to school, crossing roads, or waiting for the bus. It involves a range of fun resources for use in the classroom, take home activities, a colouring-in competition, and giveaways which promote the key messages.
Templates are available in Te Reo Māori and English, to be printed size A4.
Templates are available for fun and short activities to do in the classroom.
Each school picks a day in August to hold the day (students dressing up in bright clothing and accessories, to promote the Be Seen, Tīaho Mai message in a fun and creative way).
An electronic flyer will be supplied to the school to be distributed to the wider school community e.g., email out by the school to parents and whānau, put on websites and Facebook pages, so parents and caregivers are also given key messages from the campaign.
Road safety is everyone's business - because we are all road users, whether as passengers in cars, drivers, cyclists, or whanau of children who walk to school and cross the road. Start up a conversation with friends and family around the importance of these messages.
For any further information on the campaign, please email the Let's Go team or call us on 06 759 6060.
Around the busy Christmas/summer period people are often doing more travel, navigating busier streets, and sharing the road with often stressed and distracted users. It's a particularly important time to pay extra attention on the roads, and not let our busy lives distract us from getting home safely.
