HOW WOULD YOUNG PEOPLE IN IDRIJA REDUCE SPEEDING AROUND PRIMARY SCHOOL?

11/23/2021
Proposals and initiatives created by the ninth graders of the Idrija Primary School together with the ambassadors and youth workers of the VOZIM Institute at the Speed Workshops handed over to the Mayor of the Municipality of Idrija.

Today, the ninth graders (pupils aged 14-15) from the Idrija Primary School handed over their initiatives and proposals to the Mayor of the Municipality of Idrija, Tomaž Vencl, in an online event, to improve traffic safety around their school and in the local environment.

The pupils developed their initiatives for the Municipality of Idrija in the framework of the project "Thinking Fast, Driving Slow" at the so-called Speed Workshops, implemented by the VOZIM Institute in partnership with the Triglav Insurance Company and the Sipronika company and co-financed by the Slovenian Traffic Safety Agency. For this purpose, Zavarovalnica Triglav and Sipronika also installed a 3-PTC speedometer in Idrija, near the primary school, through which the pupils could observe the behaviour of those driving past.

The headmistress of Idrija Primary School, Ivica Vončina, stressed the importance of involving pupils in the topic of speeding: "It is right to give them the opportunity to be heard already now, to say how they see the situation, and above all, to be an example", and went on to say that she wants us to "do the best we can for our children, and to do what we can to ensure their safety".

Dragica Sternad Pražnikar, spokesperson for the Slovenian Traffic Safety Agency, stressed why addressing speeding is important on both the national and local level: "Almost every second loss of life on Slovenian is caused by speeding. All these factors make it necessary to address speeding issues at a national and local level, where the key is to bring together different areas and stakeholders in road safety - prevention, driver education and training, and police supervision. Speed limits are for our safety. But the speed limit does not mean that we should drive at that speed all the time, but that we should adapt our speed to the road and traffic conditions."

Tina Žgavc, Director of Triglav Insurance Nova Gorica, added about the project itself: "Pedestrians remain the most vulnerable link in traffic, despite many improvements. Pedestrians are the most vulnerable group, especially the youngest ones, who are most at risk at the very moment they cross the road. That's why, we at Slovenia's largest insurance company, have helped more than 80 local communities to install speed reducing displays in the core of their towns. But the latter, although interactive, can remain just signs. Change only happens when we behave differently in traffic."

The advantage of monitoring speed camera data, displaying it in schools and taking appropriate action "so that together we can all have safer roads in a year, two, three", stressed Mirko Oblak from Sipronika. "We are here as a technological support to make the data available to all those responsible who have an interest in improving the situation (on the roads)."

Linked to the analysis of the journeys and their interpretation in the so-called Speed Workshops, another key observation made by the students is that drivers do indeed exceed the speed limit too often. When looking for possible solutions to reduce speeding in the school surroundings and in the wider local environment, the pupils had in mind what they themselves and the local community - primarily the municipality - could do.

Pupils see that they themselves can contribute to better road safety by:

  • not distracting the driver as passengers,
  • planning to leave home on time (and thus avoiding unnecessary rushing).

 

They see a greater responsibility of the municipality in:

  • Putting up speed bumps in front of schools and kindergartens,
  • Putting up traffic signs in more visible places,
  • Increased supervision on the roads and higher fines for offenders,
  • the installation of cardboard police officers in various locations around Idrija Municipality,
  • consideration of the introduction of music roads (following the Austrian model),
  • providing more lectures on safe driving and road safety.

The Mayor of Idrija, Tomaž Vencelj, praised the work of the representatives of the VOZIM Institute and the proposals of the students, which he found interesting and innovative, especially the idea of musical roads, and stressed that the Municipality of Idrija "is working to improve the traffic situation in our area". He went on to present concrete plans for the construction of a bicycle road to Idrija Bela and a bicycle road between Mokraška vas and Spodnja Idrija, which will provide both a safe cycling and walking route. He shared with the gathering the conceptual plans for a new "Drop off zone" (short-term parking area) near the primary school, which would decongest the road between the primary school and Idrija's main bus station.

"The initiative handover event brought the project to a close, but the project will continue in the future, because its effectiveness is high and it is creating aware young people who know how to express their opinions and will have the power to make a difference in their environment," added David Razboršek, Director of the VOZIM Institute, on the occasion of the project's closure in 2021.

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