How to save lives

However, I sometimes wonder whether the authorities ever take the trouble to analyse accidents, determine the cause and address it.

You recently reported that three more speed camera sites are to be put up around Swindon. I believe there are clear rules for the sighting of cameras, one of which is that the location should have a history of accidents.

However, David Frampton, the manager of the Swindon and Wiltshire Road Safety Partnership declined to release any figures for the locations in question. Why? Failure to provide this information reinforces the perception that these are nothing more than revenue cameras, the purpose of which is to raise money for the Exchequer.

I was particularly concerned by Mr Frampton's statement that there has been a 73 per cent reduction in the number of casualties since the introduction of mobile cameras.

A reduction is very welcome, but it is simplistic in the extreme to attribute it to the cameras. Many factors, including weather and the time of year, have a major effect on the incidence and seriousness of accidents, and to imply a direct causal link between the introduction of mobile cameras and a reduction in casualties is so misleading to be verging on irresponsible.

Unfortunately, the root cause of most accidents involving pedestrians is a sad lack of road safety awareness on the part of the pedestrians themselves.

We do not appear to teach youngsters even the rudiments of road safety, with the result that they are regularly to be seen playing in the road, running across without looking, crossing in unsafe places, and behaving with a breathtaking disregard for their own safety.

Perhaps some of the money raised by the revenue cameras could be used to provide road safety training to children in school. It wouldn't raise any revenue, but it might save some lives.

Rod Nicholls

Axbridge Close,