Road death is the leading cause of death for those aged between 5 and 40. You are four times more likely to be killed in a crash than from murder/manslaughter. The domination of our public spaces by motorised vehicles means that every time you step out, especially on foot or on a bike, you take a risk like no other – this is the price we pay for an over-motorised and car dependent society.

And yet the police allocate only a fraction of resources to enforcement, compared to that invested in preventing other crimes. Those injured by dangerous, speeding or drink drivers are not even included in counts of victims of crime statistics. Speeding vehicles was the most common type of anti-social behaviour reported in the British Crime Survey—until it was dropped from the survey.

Join us and Amy Aeron-Thomas, Executive Director of RoadPeace, the national charity for road crash victims and those concerned about road danger at July’s Street Talk to discuss the work RoadPeace is doing to challenge the justice sector’s tolerance of road danger, including the need for greater transparency and accountability, and highlight how this plays a key role in creating a safer and fairer city.

Amy Aeron-Thomas, Executive Director, RoadPeace: Towards a safer and fairer city – traffic justice in London. Upstairs at The Yorkshire Grey, 2 Theobalds Road, WC1X 8PN at 7pm (bar open 6pm) on 5th July 2011.

Amy first became involved with RoadPeace in 2000 whilst working for TRL on a DFID funded scoping study in community participation and traffic safety. With graduate degrees in Public Administration, Transportation Engineering and Planning, she has worked in over 14 countries in Africa, Asia, and Central Europe.

Her career began in the US where she worked as a transport planner, including promoting car ride sharing (in 1986). Her brother was one of the over 50,000 Americans killed on the roads in 1965. She is keen to promote evidence-based policy and links between researchers and campaigners.

RoadPeace is an independent national charity, providing practical and emotional support, and advocacy to those affected by road crashes; as well as campaigning for justice for road crash victims and for road danger reduction, with a focus on reducing the volume, speed and dominance of motorised traffic and promoting cycling and walking. RoadPeace was a winner of the Guardian Charity Award in 2008.

RoadPeace was founded in 1992 on the principle of road danger reduction (RDR). RDR focuses on making the road environment less dangerous by tackling danger at source through reducing the speed, volume and dominance of motorised traffic. It also takes into account the other negative consequences of inappropriate and excessive motor vehicle use such as fear and intimidation, environmental impact and public health issues. RDR differs from traditional road safety in that it adopts a wider approach that considers not only the quantity of death and injury by crashes, but also the effects of excessive and inappropriate motor vehicle use on the quality of life and the environment. It places a greater duty of care on those that pose the greater threat and argues for danger to be controlled at source.