Young drivers were exposed to horrific sights and accounts from people who have been involved in road accidents, during an intensive two-day road safety event.

Organised by the Fire Service, 'Surviving Driving' featured talks from experts and motorists who had witnessed and been caught up in a traffic collision because of speeding, drink driving, driving under the influence of drugs and other related problems.

The Fire Service provided demonstrations on how the emergency services respond to accidents in the hope that their safety message would get across to young and novice drivers, as this is the category that are most at risk of being involved in an incident.

A spokesman for the Fire Service said, "We wanted young people who attended Surviving Driving to go away with an understanding of the huge responsibilities that come with being on the road and ultimately for them to be safer on the road. The different presentations and exhibitions will have given them a lot of information on how to keep themselves safe and allow them to take their first steps to becoming responsible road users".

The Ambulance Service spoke about the experiences they have suffered when attending the aftermath of a high-speed crash and the Highways agency talked on the problems they face as a result of speeding motorists.

There were in depth talks on the consequences of dangerous, reckless and anti-social driving by the Police who also explained the consequences irresponsible drivers will face. Young drivers speeding and drink driving continues to be a problem, but motorists who are driving whilst under the influence of drugs has seen the biggest rise in recent years.

Some of the figures quoted at the event, go to show the risk young people are at when out on the roads. They included:

' You have a one in 200 chance of being killed in a road traffic collision

' On average, nine people were killed and more than 70 seriously injured in road traffic collisions in the UK every day

' One in four drivers killed in the UK are under the age of 25

' Four out of five non-medical deaths of 10 to 19 year olds are in road traffic accidents

There were also examples of cars that had been crushed after being seized by police because their owners had been driving them without the necessary car insurance.

About the Author:

Rochelle Martinez, Freelance Web Content Article Writer for three years.