GREEN FLAGS RESEARCH AIMS TO PUT THE BRAKES ON DANGEROUS DRIVING

Motoring assistance provider, Green Flag, is set to launch a major research project examining British drivers attitudes and behaviour on road safety.

The initial findings will be published as part of the companys continuing sponsorship of Road Safety Week (September 22-28), a national campaign involving government, schools and businesses that aims to raise awareness of safety issues.

Green Flag will produce a series of reports examining British drivers attitudes and behaviour, to be issued in the lead up to the road safety charity Brakes annual campaign.

Green Flag spokesman Nigel Charlesworth said: The reports are part of our continued commitment over the past three years to support Brakes ‘Pledge to Drive Safely campaign, by raising awareness of road safety issues among drivers and throughout the community. The research should demonstrate how motorists view the risks involved with motoring and our willingness to become safer drivers."

More than 1,000 drivers, including young people and high mileage drivers, will be questioned on issues such as attitudes to vulnerable road users, vehicle maintenance, alcohol and drug use, driver fatigue, distractions, speeding and the law.

The study follows on from work carried out by the company in 2001 and will be published in the second Green Flag Report on Safe Driving.

Nigel Charlesworth added: It is hoped that by highlighting the perceptions of motorists and comparing this against statistical evidence, drivers will employ common sense and wake up to their bad habits and think more carefully about the potential consequences each time they get behind the wheel of their cars. The results of the reports will also identify any significant changes in attitudes since the first report was published."

Ends
Notes to editors:

• Green Flag has co-sponsored Brakes Road Safety Week for the past three years

• A summary of the original Green Flag Report on Safe Driving 2001 can be found at www.greenflag.com

• Green Flag Motoring Assistance provides roadside rescue and recovery to more than 4m customers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year

• Green Flags incident management centre in Leeds handles around 1m calls each year

• On average, Green Flag reaches customers within 35 minutes (verified by research)

• Green Flag customers give the service a 98 per cent satisfaction rating (based on the results of questionnaires sent to 500,000 customers)