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Aberdeen City Council has won a highly prestigious U.K. award for Road Safety at the National Transport Awards 2005 held earlier this week in London.

The award, in recognition of the City's success in meeting early, and exceeding, national road safety targets means that Aberdeen City Council now holds Scottish, British and European Road Safety Awards.

Hosted by Professor David Begg and Baroness Ros Scott with an after dinner speech given by Sir Bill Morris, the 2005 National Transport Awards - open to all local authorities and organisations in transport across the UK & Ireland - celebrate the achievements of the transport industry. A record number of local authorities and organisations involved in transport submitted entries for the fifth National Transport Awards.

Ewen Kay, Principal Engineer in Roads Services, who collected the award on behalf of Road Services said: 'Since Aberdeen City Council's inception in 1996, the City's road safety policies have been to drive down the number of road traffic casualties while improving conditions for walking, cycling and public transport.

'In 2003, 416 people were killed or injured on Aberdeen's roads compared to the mid-80s average of 1223 and the late 90s average of 716, reductions of 66% and 42% respectively. These figures include 'slight' casualties and are therefore more difficult to achieve than the national targets.

'This has been achieved using AIP cluster, route and area identification and treatment of problems, together with comprehensive traffic management on an area-by-area basis across the City. Cycle and pedestrian facilities are progressively upgraded and bus lanes and park-and-ride introduced.

'Road safety education and enforcement are vigorously pursued with our partners and this holistic approach seems to be bearing fruit in Aberdeen.

'The unvalidated Scottish Executive figures for 2004 indicate that we may have achieved our local target for 2010 of fewer than 400 casualties in the year, reaching 396. If this is confirmed, we will set ourselves a more rigorous target.'

Aberdeen City Council won the award ahead of four other shortlisted councils: Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council; London Borough of Camden; North Lanarkshire Council and Staffordshire County Council.

Professor David Begg, Chair of the National Transport Awards Judging Panel said: 'The investment that's gone in from local and national Government and from the transport industry is paying great dividends and I feel really privileged to be involved in transport at such an exciting time. We are starting to see an end to the long term decline in bus patronage with some areas experiencing substantial growth, and our road safety record continues to be the best in Europe.

'It seems a long time ago that we set up the National Transport Awards (now in its fifth year). 

'Even with all the improvements that we're seeing in transport, we're not very good at giving ourselves a pat on the back so we're still here to do that for you!'

Source: Aberdeen City Council