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2004
'Remember Me' Roadside Memorial Sign on UK roads
Since its launch on 31 August 2003, hundreds of the new signs
have started to appear on British roads: Small plaques, displaying
a single red flower(1) on a black background and carrying the
message 'Remember Me' are marking the places where someone has been
killed or seriously injured in a road crash.
Placed by members of RoadPeace, the UK's national charity for
road traffic victims, the 'Remember Me' signs are the first ever
nation-wide public acknowledgement for those killed and injured on
Britain's roads, and for their families. They are also an
arresting, universally understood and non-denominational reminder
of the dangers we all face when using the roads.
RoadPeace has provided dedicated support and advice to road
crash victims since 1992. During this time, the organisation has
also sought to highlight the scale and preventable nature of road
deaths and injuries and the injustices and lack of
A Sign of Loss. A Sign of Warning. A Sign of Hope?
As all road users will be aware, floral tributes to road crash
victims are now an all too common sight on Britain's roads. While
they remain, these shrines are a visible and poignant focus of
grief for families and friends of victims. Importantly, they also
provide a unique and effective warning to motorists, pedestrians
and cyclists of the dangers that exist on even the most
unremarkable of streets.
However, flowers wither and die and road users have no lasting
reminder of the dangers at the location.
Brigitte Chaudhry, National Secretary of RoadPeace,
said:
"We would like to see the 'Remember Me' sign erected
automatically wherever someone is killed or seriously injured in a
road crash - to highlight the scale, remember victims and prevent
future tragedies."
Jenny Jones, Deputy Mayor of London, said:
"We have monuments to recent tragedies, like the Paddington
rail crash, but not to the thousands of people who have been dying
for decades in an everyday slaughter on the streets."
Contacts:
RoadPeace office 020 8838 5102
Brigitte Chaudhry 020 8964 1800
Sweetapple office 01438 718 007
Notes to editors:
(1) The red flower represents a scarlet anemone - a flower
associated in mythology with love and loss.
The Remember Me Sign has been created by Sweetapple and RoadPeace
to further the charity's important work.
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