Children's views on the road environment and safety

This paper describes the qualitative phase of a research study that explored children's perceptions of the road environment, traffic and accidents involving children. It includes their views and experience of road crossing facilities and measures that they believe would help them to cross more safely. The children interviewed were aged between 8 and 15 and were drawn from junior and secondary schools in North London and Hertfordshire. Children believed that they were most at risk in the company of other children, owing to the distraction of conversation or play. In addition, they found that the volume and speed of traffic made it difficult for them to find safe crossing opportunities, which could cause them to be hesitant or to take undue risks. Mandatory controls over drivers were popular, and they wanted to see crossing facilities that simplified the crossing task and offered them more protection.