Peek-a-boo

Swedish company Amparo has just started UK trials of a potentially life saving technology aimed at raising awareness of school children near public roads. The system, called SeeMe, uses a transponder attached to a school bag which will trigger solar-powered road side warning lights when a child with the SeeMe system in operation is near by.

The system is already in full use across Sweden and studies there show that when SeeMe is activated drivers will decrease their speed by up to 13km/h in a 70km/h speed zone. That doesn’t sound like much, but would bring a big saving in emergency stopping distances.

Current UK trials are taking place in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, where two school children were killed in 2008.

“Our experience is that the most dangerous situation is when the child is walking to or from the school or school bus, either on their way to the bus stop, crossing the road, or in connection with getting on or off the bus” says Leon Nilsson, COO of Amparo Solutions. “In each case the SeeMe® equipment can make a significant difference, in winter or summer, night or day.”

The SeeMe system appears to be a great use of simple technology that could make a significant impact on increasing road safety for all.

NEW SWEDISH WARNING SYSTEM CAN SAVE SCHOOLCHILDRENS’ LIVES

• Amparo SeeMe® warning system reduces traffic speeds, raises driver awareness at school bus stops, cycle and pedestrian crossings.

A new warning system developed in Sweden has the potential to save lives of British schoolchildren, say its makers. The system links an automatic radio ‘tag’, attached to a child’s school bag to trigger solar-powered warning lights on bus stops or at crossings, to warn drivers that schoolchildren are in the vicinity.

The Amparo SeeMe® system is now in use across Sweden, including areas north of the Arctic Circle, but in particular it has been evaluated for the past two years at three locations in Southern Sweden; near Eslöv, Gothenberg and Uppsala. They are each in areas which are at around the same latitude as northern England and thus have similar weather and seasonal lighting conditions.

Evaluations carried out by the Swedish National Road Administration show that SeeMe®, when active, reduces the speed of passing vehicles by on average 13km/h. This speed reduction can mean the difference between life and death.

“SeeMe is an efficient measure for increased safety at bus stops, a tested and verified solution in use all over Sweden today” says Leon Nilsson, the COO of Amparo Solutions. “Keeping it simple means a cost-efficient solution with low maintenance. It is also easily adaptable to changing needs, for example if the bus stop needs to be moved, no investment in infrastructure such as electrical supply is needed.”

The first trials of the new SeeMe® warning system in the UK are already taking place in Aberdeenshire, where sadly two young lives were lost last year, after being struck by cars when they stepped off school buses. While SeeMe® is fully CE-certified and adheres to EN12352; Amparo is currently seeking business partners across Europe to help it gain local homologation from organisations such as the Department for Transport in the UK.

In Scotland, Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson is taking advantage of devolution to ensure that the SeeMe® equipment is made available as rapidly as possible.

“The families who have lost children as a result of road accidents have faced unimaginable tragedy” said Mr. Stevenson. “We don’t currently have powers over road safety legislation, but I am determined that we make full use of our devolved responsibilities to ensure action is taken in Scotland.”

Across the UK, most recent DfT figures show that in 2005, 28,126 children aged 0-15 were injured in road accidents. 3,331 of these were seriously injured and 141 were killed. These include 11,250 child pedestrian casualties, of which 2,071 were seriously injured and 63 killed.

While great efforts, including more clearly marked crossings and speed camera enforcement, have allowed a significant reduction in casualties to be seen from the levels of over 6,800 a decade ago, much more can be achieved.

It is particularly noteworthy that while the number of children killed or seriously injured (KSI) in cycling accidents has fallen by 53% and as car passengers have fallen by 54%, the number of KSI accidents for child pedestrians in the UK has fallen by just 46%.

“Our experience is that the most dangerous situation is when the child is walking to or from the school or school bus, either on their way to the bus stop, crossing the road, or in connection with getting on or off the bus” says Leon Nilsson. “In each case the SeeMe® equipment can make a significant difference, in winter or summer, night or day.”

“Our experience is that the system, based on driver recognition of a risk, rather than an automatic response to a speed camera, is much more effective. The speed reductions on average are 13km/h (8mph) on a 70km/h (40mph) road and of 7km/h (4.5mph) on a 50km/h (30mph) road.”

“SeeMe® is seen as a positive solution” Leon Nilsson concludes. “With SeeMe® securing the school bus stop and school crossings, parents feel more secure and confident in allowing their children to walk, use public transport, or cycle to school instead of being driven. The introduction of a clear and simple safety measure by the local road authority demonstrates a positive action and generates goodwill rather than resentment, from other road users.”