The fire department and the traffic guards are starting a new project on road safety: kindergartens in East Friesland are given safety vests that they can lend to children. The institutions must report now.
Aurich – The dark season has begun – the difficult lighting conditions make it more dangerous for pedestrians and cyclists in traffic. Since children are particularly at risk, the Ostfriesische Verkehrswachten and the Ostfriesische Landschaftliche Brandkasse are starting a new project: 318 kindergartens in Ostfriesland are called upon to report their need for safety vests for children under six years of age. The fire fund provides 2000 vests with reflective stripes for this purpose. They can be borrowed. That comes from a press release.
“We know that there are still children who move ‘invisibly’ in the twilight and darkness in traffic,” reports Hajo Reershemius, regional representative of the East Frisian traffic guards. Because their field of vision is limited compared to adults, children are particularly at risk, he explains. And: With dark clothing, people can only be seen from a distance of 25 meters. With light-colored clothing, it is already 40 meters, with reflective clothing even around 140 meters. Reershemius: “At 50 km / h, the stopping distance is around 30 meters, which is not enough to stop in front of the pedestrian! This is where our idea comes in: There should be lending vests at as many of the 381 East Frisian kindergartens as possible.”
Traffic guards distribute the west
“Of course we are aware that the demand will be significantly greater than our project allows, but we just want to set positive signals and try something new with the ‘pool character'”, says Signe Foetzki, press spokeswoman for the Brandkasse Communication cited. “This time, our motivation in terms of prevention is also based on social issues,” she says. Since there is, unfortunately, no guarantee that every child already has their vest, the Brandkasse 2000 bought different sizes. One of these is to be made available to the local kindergartens so that the institutions can lend the vests to children if necessary.
According to the press release, 53 children under the age of six were involved in accidents last year – 20 fewer than in 2017. “Of the 53 accidents, six were bicycle accidents and eight were pedestrian accidents. Most accidents occur with the little ones as passengers in cars. For us, this means that the children move ‘relatively safely’ in traffic or are very well looked after here. But what is and remains important: signal colors on clothing ensure safety during the day, regardless of whether it is red, yellow, or orange. And in the dark, the reflective strips make it much easier to see,” says Hans-Friedel Walther, Chairman of the Aurich traffic watch. Attention was paid to the procurement of the new vests.