Hi Kelly,

After four collisions occurred in Ottawa over the last week, the Ottawa Safety Council (OSC), is urging drivers to slow down and follow the rules of the road.

On April 13, a Manotick collision involving pedestrians left one person dead and another in hospital with serious injuries. Then on April 15, a pedestrian was hit and killed by a vehicle that fled the scene in Westboro. That same day, a cyclist was hit by a vehicle and is left clinging to life.

According to Parachute Canada, Motor vehicle collisions are the second leading cause of injury hospitalizations and third-leading cause of unintentional injury deaths in Canada. Speeding is a contributing factor in one in four fatal crashes in Canada.

It doesn’t need to be this way. Up to 90 per cent of motor vehicle collisions are preventable. Reducing vehicle speed has been proven to be effective in preventing crashes and reducing the severity of injuries. At a speed of 30 km/h, vehicles and pedestrians are both relatively safe; drivers have sufficient time to stop for pedestrians and pedestrians can make better crossing decisions.

Here’s why speeding matters:

· Hit by a vehicle traveling 30km/ hr 9/10 pedestrians survive

· When the vehicle is going 50km/h 5 /10 pedestrians survive

· When the vehicle is going 65km /h 1/ 10 pedestrians survive

Even small reductions in speed can be significant. For each 1.6 km/h reduction in average speed, collisions are reduced by five per cent. (Parachute Canada)

These recent tragedies on our roads in Ottawa are a reminder for us all to all take a more proactive role in making our roads safer.

Here’s how everyone can TAKE ACTION on making roads safer:

1. Take the OSC’s Road SMARTS Pledge here

2. Be a safer road user, no matter how you get around our city. Find FREE resources for kids, parents, teachers, and the general public here

3. Obey the OSC Crossing Guard in school zones to help keep children safe

The Ottawa Safety Council

Crossing guards play a vital role in our communities and now is your chance to recognize them!

Ottawa’s Crossing Guard of the Year contest will run from April 1st through April 30th, 2023.

The Ottawa Crossing Guard of the Year Award is presented annually to a Guard who shows high levels of excellence and dedication to the important role of keeping our community’s children safe.

The winner of Ottawa’s Crossing Guard of the Year Award will receive a $500 cash prize.

The nomination process takes only a minute!

The OSC is pleased to partner with the City of Ottawa to deliver FREE Experienced Rider Courses!

The Experienced Rider Course is for M2 and M licensed riders with some experience. The duration of each course will be a maximum of four 4 hours.

Some of the tools and techniques covered include, but are not limited to, the following:

- Using emergency braking.

- Brake balancing to avoid collisions.

- Reaction time and collision avoidance.

- Surviving and preventing high risk situations

Join our waitlist here

Our RoadSMARTS4Kids library of resources offers activities, challenges, downloadable lesson plans, presentations, videos and our RoadSMARTS E-cademy virtual courses, that make learning important road safety concepts, skills and awareness fun and engaging elementary age children.

These resources are free, easy to use and cover a variety or age-appropriate road safety teachings. Topics such as cycling, walking, sharing our roads, booster seat safety and preparing to walk places alone for the first time are explored in engaging ways and satisfy Ministry curriculum requirements around health and safety, active living, spatial skills, reading and math.

RoadSMARTS 4 Kids Teacher Modules

These downloadable modules, essentially a “30 minute program in a can” are designed to be delivered by teachers and include:

- Lesson prep overview with required materials

- Suggested lesson script

- Powerpoint presentations

- Short videos

- Activities and supporting activity sheets

Check out our teacher modules

RoadSMARTS E-cademy Virtual Courses

The RoadSMARTS E-cademy Courses feature:

- A suite of e-learning courses for students JK-Grade 6.

- Targeted to age group

- Each course takes between 20–40 minutes to complete.

- Pre and Post Course Quizzes test students knowledge

- Students have full interaction with course and earn points

- Students can download personalized certificate upon course completion

Enroll yourself and/or your students/children in the RoadSmarts E-academy

The Ottawa Safety Council is powered by incredibly dedicated volunteers!

Over 50 volunteers put in over 2,000 hours annually with the OSC.

From our volunteer Board of Directors, providing oversight of the organization, to our volunteer motorcycle instructors training motorcycle enthusiasts how to be safer on our roads - a BIG THANK YOU to all! We appreciate you!

We would like to take a moment to congratulate Elizabeth Hall, our employee of the month for February 2023! Elizabeth joined the OSC team in December 2019. She can be found helping the community of Assumption School at the intersection Olmstead St, at Levis Ave, in Vanier. Nominated by a member of the public, Elizabeth is a positive influence on the community. Elizabeth is a dependable and reliable crossing guard with a great attendance record and she always has a smile on her face.

On April 21, we had the honour to have Councillor Catherine Kitts (Ward 19 Orléans South-Navan) join Leslie (Crossing Guard at Brian Coburn and Aquaview) and Jamie Kwong (Executive Director) to be a Crossing Guard for a day! "Our biggest issue raised by our constituents is speeding" stated Councillor Kitts. During the shift, five cars ran through red lights!

ICYMI: Here’s the segment we did on CTV Morning Live where OSC spoke about road safety with Stefan Keyes! Watch here 📺

Interested in road safety? Join our team! We're hiring for various positions.

Crossing Guards: Join our team of dedicated Crossing Crossing Guards! Get outside, meet new people and make a difference in your community. To learn more, Click here for more information or reach out to Stephanie, our Recruiter!

Visit the Employment Section of our website for more information on all of our current opportunities.

How often do you or your loved ones use our roads (whether walking, driving or cycling) to get to school, work and play?

The Ottawa Safety Council is a registered charity focused on promoting social impact through education and engagement. Your donations support our road safety programs such as WalkSafe, BestFit Booster, and CycleSafe.

All donations through Canada Helps receive a tax receipt.