North East road safety campaign launches
A teenager who miraculously survived after running into the path of a car has given her support to a new North East road safety campaign.
Emily Armitage was 15 when she leapt off a bus and, distracted by her mobile phone, ran into the path of a car, causing her to bounce off the windscreen.
Here you can see how she was thrown into the road like a rag doll – her head and elbow leaving impressions in the car windscreen and her shoes ending up in a nearby field and garden.
Amazingly, Emily, 19, suffered no major injuries, but she still endures pain in her legs and back and suffers anxiety over what happened.
She is backing ‘Look Out for Each Other’, a region-wide campaign by Road Safety GB North East, which is urging everyone, whether they are drivers, pedestrians or cyclists, to take care on the roads and to look out for each other, especially at times of higher risk.
Emily, from Lingdale, said:
“I should have waited until the bus had moved off before attempting to cross the road, but I didn’t – I thought it was safe to cross and I just ran straight in front of the bus and into the path of an oncoming car,”
“Everything happened so quickly, I didn’t know what had hit me. I realise that if the driver had been going any faster, I would have been killed.”
“I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. I was extremely lucky, but others may not be so fortunate. I hope this campaign can save lives.”
Road Safety GB North East is launching the campaign with support from the region’s 12 local authorities, police forces, fire crews and Police and Crime Commissioners, to ultimately lower casualty and accident figures.
The latest figures show that during the past five years there have been 26,996 road traffic collisions on the region’s roads – resulting in 37,790 injuries, 326 fatalities and 3,953 serious injuries.
From 2010 to 2015 there was a decrease of 8% in the total number of injuries, however, last year, from December 2014 to November 2015, the number of fatal and serious injury accidents reached a peak – increasing by 12% from 2010.
Total injuries in the North East by local authority and severity, Dec 2010 - Nov 2015
Local Authority
Fatal
Serious
KSI
Slight
Total
County Durham
112
875
987
6,423
7,410
Northumberland
78
692
770
4,611
5,381
Newcastle upon Tyne
11
419
430
4,339
4,769
Sunderland
19
367
386
3,557
3,943
Gateshead
23
302
325
3,166
3,491
North Tyneside
16
225
241
2,617
2,858
Stockton-on-Tees
20
271
291
1,893
2,184
Middlesbrough
187
194
1,742
1,936
South Tyneside
144
150
1,586
1,736
Darlington
12
157
169
1,429
1,598
Redcar and Cleveland
15
183
198
1,286
1,484
Hartlepool
131
138
862
1,000
Total
326
3,953
4,279
33,511
37,790
Road Safety GB North East Chairman Paul Watson said:
“You may be the greatest driver in the world, with a terrific safety record, but you could still be involved in a serious collision due to a mistake by someone else.”
“Accident figures never make good reading. We are urging everyone to take extra care when on the roads, and to make sure they act safely. Crucially, we want everyone to anticipate other people’s poor judgment.”
Ron Hogg, Police and Crime Commissioner for Durham, said he would be lending his support to the campaign. He said:
“Road safety is something we can all relate to because we all use the roads and we are all vulnerable to injury and the heartache of losing loved ones.
“It makes sense for all partners in the region to work together to bring down accident figures. We urge everyone to be safe and to recognise where the risks are higher. Slow down and drive in accordance with the roads and the weather. Let’s look after each other.”
For more information about Road Safety GB North East and the campaign go to