Road Smart
We all have a part to play in helping to keep our roads safe for all; be that motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, or animals.
At South Wales Police we have specialist teams dedicated to keeping road users safe, including a Roads Policing Unit who patrol our roads day and night to both prevent and detect offences, and a dedicated Territorial Crime Team, which targets organised criminals, proactively denying them use of the road network.
We have a number of specialist officers including those who are trained to investigate collisions, support bereaved families and investigate complex cases to bring them before the courts and offenders to justice.
In addition, we work with a range of partners, including South Wales Trunk Road Agency (SWTRA), Traffic Wales, local authorities and emergency services colleagues.
We are one of a number of partners who support Go Safe, a Wales-wide road casualty initiative, which also hosts Op Snap.
The Fatal Five
Did you know, the Fatal Five are the leading causes of road traffic collisions in Wales.
Please be Road Smart and make sure you know what the Fatal Five are and how by avoiding them you can better protect yourself and other road users.
Test your knowledge with our #FatalFive quiz
1. How many people were prosecuted for seatbelt offences in South Wales in 2020?
361
594
689
826
2.How often is someone killed or seriously injured on UK roads?
Every 10 minutes
Every 22 minutes
Every 47 minutes
Every 55 minutes
3. Excess speed is a contributing factor to how many fatal road crashes?
1 in 3
1 in 4
1 in 5
1 in 6
4. How many people a year die in the UK, in a drink related crash?
Less than 150
More than 200
More than 300
5. Drug-driving is a factor in how many fatal crashes in the UK?
1 in 5
1 in 10
1 in 20
1 in 30
6. How more likely are you to be in a crash if you use your phone behind the wheel?
Two times
Three times
Four times
1. 689
2. Every 22 minutes
3. 1 in 3
4. More than 200
5. 1 in 20
6. Four times
Mobile phones at the wheel - updated UK legislation
On March 25, 2022, the law changed in relation to the use of mobile phones at the wheel.
Further details can be found here and below, PC Mike Jordan from our Roads Policing Unit provides some further clarity.
Op Snap: your video footage helping to keep south Wales' roads safe
Think you’ve filmed a road traffic offence in action? Don’t believe your footage will make a difference?
Everyone captured in these short clips has been prosecuted, for offences including dangerous driving, driving without due care and attention, contravening traffic lights, and driving with an insecure load.
All were prosecuted as a direct result of reports from the public.
We all have a responsibility to help keep our roads safe, and your dash-cam, mobile phone or CCTV footage can play a huge part in that.
Whether you’ve captured someone driving without a seatbelt, while using a mobile phone, or driving dangerously, Op Snap, hosted by our partner agency GoSafe, enables you to report traffic offence concerns and easily submit footage.
Find out more about the process: GoSafe - Op Snap
'You are possibly going to ruin your own life, as well as someone else's'
Ron Fealey was a much loved, popular community member in the Merthyr area, and he will be sorely missed by his family and the wider community.
This was a traumatic experience for the family particularly over the festive period.
'It’s not big and it’s not clever to go fast. Ryan has paid by losing his life. We’ve paid massively by losing Ryan'
Ryan, 20, died after the driver of a car – in which he was a passenger – lost control.
His family is now urging drivers to take care on the roads.
Investigating serious collisions
Investigating collisions can be a complex and lengthy process. Here, Detective Constable Alun Efstathiou, from our Serious Collision Investigation Unit, provides some insight.
Top Tips: moving for an emergency vehicle
Ever panicked as an emergency vehicle approached with its lights flashing? Unsure whether you should keep going, slow down or stop?
Be Road Smart and help us and our blue-light colleagues respond to emergencies as quickly and safely as possible by brushing up on this key advice.
More detailed information about moving for emergency vehicles in various locations and circumstances is also available at https://www.bluelightaware.org.uk/
Vulnerable Road Users
Overtaking a horse and their rider safely
Did you know?
66 horses were killed on UK roads last year*.
Horse riders are dealing with big and powerful animals who can be frightened on the road, but drivers of motor vehicles can help the riders and horses by overtaking carefully and safely.
In July, a three-day road safety operation led by our mounted section in partnership with the British Horse Society (BHS) took place. The aim of Operation Arabis was to educate road users who fall below the required standard when passing a horse on the road.
Be road smart and make sure you’re overtaking horses and their riders appropriately, so that the horse and rider can return home safely and happy.
Learn more about how to safely overtake a horse below.
If you are a horse rider and have been overtaken inappropriately and have it on camera, you can report via our partners at GoSafe, who host OpSnap. Link is above to report.
Here are some British Horse Society tips on how to help keep our roads safe for vulnerable road users:
Cyclists and horse riders | The British Horse Society (bhs.org.uk)
Dead Slow | The British Horse Society (bhs.org.uk)
Riding on roads | The British Horse Society (bhs.org.uk)
*Statistics provided by BHS for UK roads.
Be Bike Safe!
Since the start of the year, there has been 45 accidents* involving motorcyclists on our roads. We want to ensure everybody who uses the roads stays safe, but people who ride motorbikes are at higher risk of being involved in collisions due to their vulnerability. Consider those around you and be #RoadSmart.
The Ride Craft Hub shares pro tips for motorcyclists, including expert road reading, to help riders brush up on their skills and be better on the bike. https://www.ridecrafthub.org/
Motorcyclists from our Road Safety and Commercial Vehicle Unit have been running some BikeSafe workshops, to educate riders on best practise.
During this workshop, we were joined by bikers from across our communities who enjoyed a ride around with our motorcyclist officers as well as classroom training to improve their riding.
Interested in joining one of our workshops? Book your place by following this link -
https://bikesafe.co.uk/southwales/...
*Statistics are correct as of 08/07/2024.