Road traffic victims are to be remembered in Liverpool at a special service.
The service is being held on Sunday 16 November (1pm) – the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims – at the memorial to road crash victims in St John’s Gardens when friends and families will gather to remember those who have died or been injured on our roads.
Following a short ceremony there will be a silence for remembrance then the release of five doves, representing the five people who die each day on the roads of this country. There will then be light refreshments in St George’s Hall before a formal service of remembrance during which the names of loved ones who have died will be read aloud and commemorated.
This year the theme for the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims is ‘Speeding Kills – Design out Speeding’; inappropriate and excessive speed is a key cause of crashes, road death and injury. RoadPeace, is calling for the use of technologies such as speed limiters and black boxes to be fitted in vehicles, as well as a default urban 20mph limit.
The Lord Mayor of Liverpool, Councillor Erica Kemp, will be attending the service along with the High Sheriff of Merseyside, Mrs Abila Pointing and Councillor Ann O’Byrne, Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner as well as the Mayors of Sefton, St. Helens, Knowsley, Ellesmere Port and Halton. The Rector of Liverpool, the Reverend Crispin Pailing, will lead the service in St George’s Hall.
Councillor Kemp, said: “This is always a very moving and poignant service. It is not only an occasion in which we remember those lost or injured on our roads but a chance to commit ourselves to do all we can to try and ensure that other families are not bereaved. This service helps to keep road safety high on our agenda.”
Pauline Fielding, bereaved mother and RoadPeace Trustee, said: “I invite the families and friends of those who have died or been injured in road crashes, together with those who support us, to join us on World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims. On this special day we remember lives lost and broken on the roads, we bring families and friends together and we give thanks for the emergency services.”
