Compulsory road safety instruction in schools

Recommendation 276 (1961)

Author(s):

Parliamentary Assembly

Origin

Assembly debate, on 26th April 1961 (4th Sitting) (see Doc. 1275, Report of the Economic Committee). Text adopted by the Assembly on 26th April 1961 (5th Sitting).

1. The Assembly,

2. Noting that countries which have made the greatest efforts in road safety teaching of school children have estimated that since such education was introduced the number of deaths among children has become stationary or even fallen, while the number of adult victims of road accidents has continued to increase at a rate roughly equal to the increase in circulation;

3. Appreciating nevertheless that the full results of road safety instruction in schools will be felt only after a period of years, and convinced that such instruction will ultimately contribute to decrease the number of road traffic victims of all age groups;

4. Noting that several important specialist organisations have advocated more intensive road safety instruction in schools;

5. Believing that the value of road safety education depends on its being taught regularly and methodically, and as a separate subject;

6. Noting, however, that only one of the member countries of the Council of Europe has made road safety a separate subject in the normal school curriculum and that the teaching of traffic sense to children in most countries relies very heavily on the valuable efforts but inadequate resources of private associations and some local authorities,

7. Recommends to the Committee of Ministers that it should instruct the Committee of Cultural Experts to convene a meeting of educational and road safety experts for the purpose of :

a exchanging experiences on methods of road safety education for children; and

b making road safety education compulsory in schools as a separate subject in the curriculum.