O’Donovan put school children in the driving seat
Waste-management firm lets pupils sit in lorry cab at City of London Road Safety Day
O’DONOVAN Waste Disposal, one of London’s leading independent waste-management companies, helped inspire and educate school children last month, as part of the City of London Corporation’s Road Safety Day at the Sir John Cass Foundation Primary School.
The company represented the construction industry by bringing the Exchanging Places programme to the school – giving children the opportunity to learn about the relationship between cyclists and HGVs on London’s busy roads.
Exchanging Places is run by the Metropolitan Police and City Police, putting cyclists in the cab of a lorry to help them view the road from the perspective of the driver – encouraging collaboration, mutual learning and understanding.
Throughout the day, 180 children – aged between five and 11 years old – took part in both classroom and playground-based activities designed to teach them the importance of road safety and the work that is being done to ensure safe logistics operations on London’s roads.
O’Donovan provided two lorries for the children to experience – a Leyland AEC, from 1966, and a current Scania high-cab roll-on/off lorry, to show the children first hand how innovation has led to improved safety features in lorries to keep vulnerable road users safer.
As a CLOCS Champion, O’Donovan are leading the way in road safety, recently unveiling the ground-breaking Mercedes-Benz Econic 4x2 skip loader 1830L with previously unseen safety features, offering the driver an unparalleled view of vulnerable road users.
Managing director Jacqueline O’Donovan commented: ‘We were delighted to take part in the valuable Road Safety Day hosted by City of London. It’s vital that we educate children about road safety and, as a progressive company known for bold decisions, we are keen to ensure we are making the best choices to help further protect vulnerable road users – and this includes an education process for the younger generation.’
City of London Corporation Road Safety Officer, Sheila Moules, said: ‘It was a pleasure to invite O’Donovan Waste to the Sir John Cass School for our Road Safety Day. I know all 180 children were delighted to sit in the cabs of the lorries and learn about safety on the City’s roads.’
