Pram Safety Debate

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31304, 25 February 1967, Page 2

Pram Safety Debate

Should a pram be pushed or pulled... across the road The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents in Britain believes it should be pulled and its view has been endorsed by the publication of a “Pramway Code” containing advice for the choosing, using and maintenance of prams.

But In Christchurch pushing is favoured for ease, safety and convenience. Mr R. H. Snowden, of Oxley Prams (Christchurch), Ltd., said pulling was safer than pushing only “when a pram pusher is crossing a road where there is no pedestrian crossing. “She may have to manoeuvre her pram between parked cars. In this instance where she has limited vision it would be safer to pull her pram into the traffic,” he said.

"Otherwise women who pull their prams do not have the

same opportunity to watch their babies. When pulling a pram among crowds, one can’t steer it properly. “We have been manufacturing prams for more than 50 years and there has never been an accident Pushing prams is the safest method,” he said.

Sister B. HelUwell, charge sister of the Plunket headquarters in Christchurch, laughed at the suggestion that prams should be pulled. Baby’s comfort was the first thing to be taken into account she said.

“Sometimes a mother might prefer to pull her pram to shield the baby from the wind and the sun, but otherwise they should be pushed. That is what they were made for,” she said.

An Auckland report says that the charge sister at the Plunket headquarters in Auckland, Sister P. Hilkie, personally feels that it is safer to push and be able to

watch the child than for the mother to turn her back and pull. “Anything can happen to a child in a pram when you are not watching it,” she said. “I would think it is considerably safer to push than pull.” An official of a large New Zealand pram manufacturing company agreed with these sentiments.

“I think pulling ia taking the idea of safety too far,” he said. “The mother has more control over the pram when she is pushing it and is able to move more quickly should an emergency arise. “If she is pulling she would be off balance and if she tried to turn the pram quickly she would probably capsize it”

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