ACCIDENTS TO CHILDREN

Press, Volume LXXXV, Issue 25945, 27 October 1949, Page 4

ACCIDENTS TO CHILDREN

NO DECISION BY ROAD SAFETY COUNCIL MR LAURENSON’S IDEAS NOT SUPPORTED (New Zealand Press Association.) WELLINGTON, October 26. Accidents to pre-school children on streets and roads were discussed by the Road Safety Council almost all this morning, but the council was unable to agree on the most effective way of safeguarding these children against traffic dangers. The council decided that for the next six months intensive publicity should be given to the question and that there be further discussions among the Transport Department, the qiotor unions, and the council on ways of reducing the number of these accidents. Mr W. B. Brown (North Island Motor Union) said the North and South Island Motor Unions had unanimously decided that, while everything possible would be done to assist in the reduction of the number of accidents to pre-school children, they would fight fhe proposal by the Commissioner of Transport (Mr G. L. Laurenson) that the law should be amended to place the onus of clearing himself from a charge of negligence on the motorist. Mr Laurenson said he submitted that additional responsibility clearly rested upon the motorist to take extreme care when in the vicinity of young children. He suggested an additional regulation reading: “Where an accident arising directly from the use of a motor-vehicle on a road results in death or injury to any child, who is pedestrian and under five years, the driver of the motor-vehicle, if not charged with any other offence arising from the accident, shall be charged with committing an offence under Section 46 hereof; (2) in any charge under this section the allegatidn in information that the defendant was committing the offence shall be sufficient evidence of that fact until the contrary is proved.”

[Section 46 of the Traffic Regulations deals with driving without due care and attention.]