WITH shorter days and icier roads during December, Somerset County Council's road safety team is warning road users of the Fatal Five behaviours, which are the main causes of serious injuries and deaths on our roads.

The team will be running a campaign on social media throughout the month to highlight these factors in collisions and showing how road users can make sure they are safe when they are travelling.

The Fatal Five factors are:

  • Speeding;
  • Careless driving;
  • Not wearing seatbelts;
  • Using a mobile phone;
  • Drink and drug driving.

Reports by the team have shown that all these factors have led to collisions around the county in the recent past, and that there are simple things that everyone can do to keep others safe also.

Driving at appropriate speeds for the conditions, ensuring drivers and passengers always have seatbelts on and keeping mobiles on silent and out of the reach of drivers are some examples.

And a driver’s fitness - making sure they are not under the influence of drugs or alcohol - and ensuring they are able to put 100 per cent of their attention on the road is vitally important too.

Cllr Mike Rigby, executive lead member for transport and digital at Somerset County Council, said: “The fatal five have been proven to be the root causes for most casualties on the roads.

“The road safety team are doing some brilliant work around raising awareness of these factors, and everyone should take notice of them and make sure they are both fit to drive, and then behaving correctly when they’re at the wheel.”

Somerset Road Safety provides advice to thousands of people every year through educational events.

The team also runs Bikeability courses for children of school age and trains school crossing patrols.