THE DASHCAM footage captured of a fire chief’s near miss with a young cyclist is to be used by the Safer Roads Partnership when it reinforces safety messages to year 11 youngsters.
The move was confirmed to The Standard on Twitter yesterday and Det Supt Stacey Williamson accompanied the news with a warning to riders.
She said: “Following the large response from the public after a video was released by Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service of a ‘near miss’ involving a child cycling in front of a car, I would like to take this opportunity to urge children to stay safe over the summer period.
“We know young people will have been looking forward to their time off school, and particularly with the nice weather will be meeting up with their friends outside.
“We don’t want to stop them from doing this but are urging parents to ensure their children have a good general awareness of road safety and are using the road network safely, whether this be on public transport, as pedestrians or cyclists.
“I want to reiterate that the child in the video is not in any kind of trouble, but that it is important we acknowledge this incident, and ask families to work with us so that everyone has a safe and enjoyable summer.”
And she added drivers could visit https://www.westmercia.police.uk/operationsnap to submit dashcam footage of road incidents as part of ‘Operation Snap’.
Robert Allen, the Group Commander for the Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service, tweeted The Standard with the shocking dashcam footage, along with details of what happened on Sunday.
He wrote: “I wasn’t sure whether to post this but if it stops a child from being killed on the road it’s worth it!
“Today a child rode out in front of me, across the dual track, without looking!
“Thankfully I was driving under the speed limit and reacted quickly!”
The story went live on our website on Monday morning and has since gone nationwide.
The tweet has since been seen by more than 77,000 people and the mum of the boy also came forward and met up with Mr Allen.
A Hereford and Worcesters Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said it was a very positive outcome to a potentially tragic event.
It added naming and shaming was never the priority, but Mr Allen was now confident the teen cyclist would be more cautious by road, that other children would benefit from the warning, and that drivers would consider their speed and concentration.
Mr Allen, who is from Bromsgrove and has two children, said: “It’s perfect summer holiday weather for kids to be enjoying being out and about on their bikes – but I shared this footage to reinforce the messages about staying safe and being vigilant while cycling on, or crossing over, main roads, and also wearing a cycling helmet.”
