Drivers in Glasgow told 'Amber means STOP'
Amber means STOP – That is the message of an advertising campaign being run on the backs of car park/on street parking tickets in Glasgow, Renfrewshire and South Lanarkshire over the Spring and Summer of 2012. The tickets put into the hands of drivers give the simple reminder that the amber traffic signal means 'STOP’ and make reference to the ‘Don’t be an amber gambler’ message that some may recall from the television adverts of the 1970s. Casualties in the West of Scotland caused through red running increased in 2011. Surveys have shown that drivers generally do not recognise that the amber light tells them to stop although the Highway Code clearly states this, adding they may go on only if the amber shows after they have crossed the stop line or are so close to it that to pull up might cause an accident.
Superintendent Jim Baird, Head of Road Policing in Strathclyde Police, said, "If a driver does not treat the amber signal as a warning not to cross the stop line or, even worse, speeds up to 'beat' the light, they may not be able to stop when the red light shows and thereby commit an offence and endanger the safety of other road users, on foot or on wheels.
"Speeding up also results in more serious injuries being sustained in any collision resulting from their actions".
Councillor Gerald Leonard of Glasgow City Council, who is also Executive Chair of the Road Safety West of Scotland Group, said, “Traffic signals are there to ensure the safe and steady flow of traffic on our streets and roads. Drivers who take a chance on amber lights put themselves and others in danger. I hope that this campaign will make them think about their actions on approaching traffic lights.”