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Helping Bikers Avoid a Slippery Subject
Issued 10th August 2005
The danger posed by diesel spills on Devon's roads is being highlighted by a campaign led by Devon County Council.
'Spiller Killer', part of the County's Bringing Bikers Out of the Blindspot motorcycle safety campaign, aims to raise awareness of the problem of diesel spills and the potential consequences.
Diesel left on the highway by HGVs, buses, coaches, tractors and cars causes a slippery surface that is dangerous to all road users and potentially lethal to motorcyclists. Government statistics show that motorcyclists are twice as likely to suffer injuries from collisions as a result of diesel spills than as a result of ice and snow.
Recent consultation with motorcyclists by the County's road safety team found that diesel spills are causing an unacceptable hazard and needlessly contributing to crashes. Many bikers gave first hand accounts of how they were involved in a crash due to diesel on the road.
In support of the initiative one of Devon County Council's largest partners, South West Highways Ltd, who have a fleet of around 300 vehicles, will be distributing information to its staff and displaying warnings of the problems with spilt diesel.
Councillor Margaret Rogers, Devon County Council's Executive Member for Environment, said: "70 motorcyclists were either killed or seriously injured in Devon during 2004 and, despite making up only 1% of all traffic, they accounted for a quarter of all fatal accidents in the county. That is 70 too many so that the dangers need to be emphasised.
"By encouraging the reporting of diesel spills so that action can be taken quickly and reminding those who use diesel including haulage companies, farmers and petrol filling stations about the problems caused by overfilling, poorly fitted fuel caps and poorly maintained vehicles we hope to reduce the number of accidents on Devon's roads.
"We would like to thank South West Highways for taking a responsible stance on this matter and helping us to spread the message to ensure that the roads are as safe as possible for all road users, especially motorcyclists. Hopefully this will encourage other fleet companies to support the Spiller Killer initiative."
SWH Term Maintenance Manager, Peter Woodhead, added: "As a motorcyclist myself I am well aware of the dangers of diesel spillages and am pleased to say that as a major fleet operator SWH is fully supporting the campaign and will be encouraging all of our supply chain to assist in reducing preventable accidents associated with diesel spillages."
A special hotline number - 01392 383329 - has been set up for people to report diesel spills on the roads. Companies wishing to support the campaign and receive information packs are asked to contact the Road Safety Helpdesk on 01392 446124.
The problem of diesel spills is also being tackled at a national level by KillSpills. Co-ordinator Stephen Edwards supports Devon's initiative. "The human cost of these preventable accidents is unacceptable. The economic and environmental costs are high and the damage diesel spills inflict on our roads puts ever increasing pressure on road maintenance budgets. The KillSpills team wish Devon County Council the greatest success in their campaign and we hope that their lead will be taken up by other authorities."
Notes for Editors:
Cllr Rogers can be contacted on 01297 680384.
For further information about the campaign please contact Michael Newcombe, Devon County Council Road Safety Officer on 01271 388496.
Devon County Council initiated the Bringing Bikers Out of the Blindspot campaign as a response to the high injury rate amongst motorcyclists. The campaign aims to reduce the numbers of motorcyclists being killed or seriously injured on Devon's roads and improve facilities for riders.
KillSpills aims to lobby central Government to change legislation on diesel spills.
More information can be obtained at www.killspills.co.uk
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