Her Royal Highness Princess Hajah Masna, Ambassador-at-Large at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, as well as Patron of the National Road Safety Council, yesterday consented to grace the launching of the BSJV Road Safety 2012, one of the largest family-oriented events in Brunei to promote road safety.

The event featured more than 25 road safety technologies and initiatives from various organisations. A live vehicle skid demonstration and emergency response drill in a road traffic accident were among the featured events.

The public also got a chance to win prizes in competitions such as baby car seats and Lego play sets.

The organisers plan to take the event on a roadshow to the Brunei-Muara District later this year to extend the reach and impact of the event to a wider community.

With the theme 'Saving Lives on Brunei's Roads', the event took place at the Pusat Insani Community Hall, and the Oil and Gas Discovery Centre, Seria. It was organised by the Brunei Shell Joint Venture (BSJV) companies and their business partners, in collaboration with the National Road Safety Council, the Royal Brunei Police Force, Public Works Department and the Fire and Rescue Department.

A speed detector was presented by Mr Ken Marnoch, Brunei Shell Petroleum's (BSP) Managing Director, on behalf of the BSJV companies, to Her Royal Highness who later presented it to the Acting OCPD of Belait Police District DSP Ariffin bin Haji Jafaruddin, who received it on behalf of the Royal Brunei Police Force.

The speed detector which shows a car's speed acts as a deterrent for those who drive beyond the speed limit.

Her Royal Highness viewed over 25 exhibition booths which showcased road safety technologies and initiatives from various organisations.

Her Royal Highness also viewed a live road safety demonstration which took place at Jalan Tengah.

The first was a skid demonstration which was part of the practical training programmes for the Defensive Driving Course at the Megamas Training Centre. The demonstration focussed on how speed impacts a vehicle's braking response in both dry and wet weather conditions.

The second demonstration was on emergency response drill in a road traffic accident, a joint presentation by the Fire and Rescue Department.

The main objective was to educate the public on what action should be taken by a passer-by if they encounter such a situation.

According to Ken Marnoch, "Ultimately, what we want is for everyone in Brunei, whether you are father, mother, son or daughter - when you drive, cycle or walk on the roads - you keep yourself and everyone around you safe, so we can all return home to our families and loved ones safely"

"We want to save lives on Brunei roads. We can do this by inculcating a road safety mindset amongst road users and sustain road safety behavioural change. On behalf of the BSJV companies, their business partners and the government agencies, we are proud to demonstrate our continuous commitment and effort as a driving force in promoting road safety".

The event is touted as one of the largest of such family-oriented events and signalled the commitment of over 25 private organisations and government agencies in working together towards the safety of the community on the road.

The BSJV Road Safety Day 2012 is tied to the Brunei Tell-A-Friend campaign and Brunei's global commitment to the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020, underpinned by the three pillars - towards better road safety management, safer roads and mobility and safer vehicles. - Borneo Bulletin (10 June 2012)