Free sight checks show a third of road users in our region need glasses
A THIRD of road users who had their eyes checked during a Nottinghamshire County Council vision campaign were found to need glasses for driving.
Using the slogan Be Roadwise, Check Your Eyes! the county council’s road safety team joined forces with Vision Express to offer free eye checks at participating local libraries.
The drop-in sessions were held last month in Beeston, Mansfield, Worksop, Sutton, Arnold, Bingham, Hucknall and Southwell.
With recent statistics suggesting that poor vision can be a major contributor to road traffic accidents, all road users – motorists, cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians – were urged to take up the opportunity of the free check in a bid to improve safety on Nottinghamshire’s roads.
Results from the tests have now been analysed and reveal an overall failure rate for driving/riding of more than a third.
“We were not particularly surprised by the results as they tend to back up what we’d researched nationally,” says Zena Oliver, principal highway safety officer with the county council.
“We found, as you might perhaps expect, that the rate of failure increased with age, but rates were still high with younger people.
“What was heartening however, was the number of people who, having failed the check at the library, went straight out of the door and down the high street to book a full test with an optician.
“After all, this is something which can very easily be put right, simply by having a full eye test and wearing the correct glasses for driving.
“I would urge anyone who is having difficulty reading road signs and street names, or driving at night, to get their eyesight checked as soon as possible. It could make a real difference to your safety – and that of others – on Nottinghamshire’s roads.”
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Weather for Mansfield
Monday 20 May 2013
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Temperature: 11 C to 19 C
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