Liverpool’s Lord Mayor will join relatives and friends of those who have been killed or injured as a result of road incidents this week.
On Sunday 31 August at 1pm the annual remembrance, organised by national charity RoadPeace, will take place on the Rankin Steps of the Anglican Cathedral.
Lord Mayor Councillor Erica Kemp said: “This is an opportunity for us to join together and remember all of those who have been killed and injured on our roads.
“Our thoughts will be with their families and friends.”
Pauline Fielding of RoadPeace said: “We encourage anyone who has been bereaved or injured through a road crash to join us for this remembrance and the chance to support and talk to each other after the ceremony.
“We are thankful to those who support us and to those who are working hard to reduce the number of people killed on the roads of Merseyside.”
A minute’s silence will be followed by the release of five doves, symbolising the average number of people who die each day on the roads across the UK.
The event will also be attended by dignitaries and representatives of the emergency services and organisations which deal with and support road crash victims.
The anniversary not only marks 17 years since the tragic death of Princess Diana, but also that of the world’s first road death in Ireland in 1896 and Britain’s first road death, when Bridget Driscoll was killed at Crystal Palace on August 17 1896, with the then coroner pronouncing “This must never happen again”.
Since then, over half a million people have been killed in crashes in Britain and the current annual global death toll is estimated at over 1.3 million deaths.
RoadPeace first introduced a day of remembrance in 1993, and has organised ceremonies of remembrance ever since – giving families an opportunity for an act of private remembrance, as well as giving public recognition to the terrible toll of road death.
