Roadwise - Giving Us Girls Confidence in the Car!

10-05-2007 14:08

The Suzy Lamplugh Trust in association with car manufacturers Chevrolet through its showrooms nationwide have come up with the idea of a national campaign specifically for women to put them back in the driving seat of their lives.

The Suzy Lamplugh Trust is hoping that the brand new project entitled Roadwise will reassure ladies that they can deal with any circumstances when out driving, from the most simple to severe situations.

The scheme, which includes a series of evening meetings being held at UK Chevrolet retail outlets, will certainly prepare women for the road ahead and give them the chance to talk about any concerns they have today.

FemaleFirst were joined by Ann Elledge of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust and event organiser Susan Kalair this week to tell us more about the reasons behind this special initiative and give us a peep at what our readers can look forward to when attending one of their planned events.

Why do women feel so afraid of driving alone now

Ann - I think it’s probably all the media coverage that incidents get. We all assume that when we hear these things happening that they’re going to happen to us the minute we get out there on the road. But fortunately they are fairly rare and if you can actually give women some strategies for staying safe then they’re much more confident to get out there and really enjoy the whole driving experience. It’s absolutely about putting women back in control and making them feel they actually really want to make the most of their cars.

What can ladies really expect at these one off evening events though - are they suitable for all age groups

? Susan - Oh yes! The campaign is being run up and down the country and is a free event. Basically it’s an informal forum where we are inviting ladies to come into our car showrooms. We’re discussing personal safety because we know it is at the forefront of our customers’ minds.

However we’re also discussing basic car maintenance because on the one side you’ve got to make sure that you’re aware of your environment so that you’re not complacent and that you’re confident to handle yourself out on the road and in yourself. The other aspect is to make sure that your car is reliable - to make sure that you know your car. It’s important that your car is regularly serviced, that you pop your bonnet open and have a nose around underneath to make sure that the fluid levels are correctly checked. Also to have a look at your tyres and familiarise with them - are they over inflated or under inflated even? Make sure they’re right.

It’s absolutely key that people are aware of their own vehicles so that they are less likely to break down. Obviously if you break down we have the top tips and advice to make sure that you manage your situation safely. But the whole idea is that you are as best prepared as you can be and there will be practical demonstrations.

There will be experts available at these evenings. We have experts from the Suzy Lamplugh Trust and we will also have a local college lecturer delivering and responding to questions.

So crucial "personal safety" issues like accidents and what to do if somebody is being followed will definitely be covered in depth at these Roadwise meetings. Tell us more..

Ann - Yes. After an accident the main thing to do is to stay calm because often tempers can get a bit frayed if there’s an incident. So if anybody gets aggressive after an incident don’t meet that aggression with further aggression because it will escalate the situation. We’d also advise that you belong to a National Breakdown organisation because a quick call to them and knowing that help is on its way can very quickly diffuse some of the tension in an incident. But also one of the main things is to make sure that if there is such a circumstance that you and any passengers that you’ve got with you stay safe. So make sure that you look after your safety before you start to deal with any of the necessities that go with an accident - e.g. exchanging deals of insurance etc. The safety of everyone is paramount.

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