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Release date: 13 November 2006
MILLIONS SEE TRANSAID AND MICHELIN MESSAGE AT LORD MAYOR’S SHOW
Michelin used its float at the London Lord Mayor’s Show to promote a message of Global Road Safety with help from international transport skills development charity Transaid.
The Lord Mayor’s Show is an 800 year old tradition, and an estimated half a million people turned out to line the streets of the City of London to cheer the floats on, with millions more watching the BBC’s live coverage.
Transaid and Michelin helpers carried placards highlighting the problems that Transaid tackles in Africa, and the impact that its work has.
One placard highlighted the shocking fact that 2,500 people are killed in road accidents in developing countries every day. In fact, 85 per cent of road accidents take place in poor countries and Transaid helps to combat this by improving the way that commercial and health service vehicles are driven and maintained. As well as making the roads safer, its work also enables health workers to reach more patients and drivers to make a better living.
Also on display was a motorcycle ambulance prototype, designed to help pregnant women in remote parts of Nigeria get to clinics for emergency treatment.
“It’s certainly the biggest public audience we’ve ever had for our message,” comments Transaid’s Head of Marketing Caroline Beaumont. “It was a great feeling to see all those people reading our placards and to get so many waves and cheers from the crowds.”
Michelin is a founding member of Transaid, and remains committed to the charity and its work to improve road safety and help make transport part of the solution to poverty and disadvantage.
All the placard messages can be seen at www.transaid.org/transaid-and-michelin-lms
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Note to Editor:
Transaid (www.transaid.org) is an international development agency that aims to improve people’s quality of life in the developing world by making transport more available and affordable. It was founded by Save The Children and the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (UK) and works by sharing skills and knowledge with local people to enable them to put in place and manage efficient transport systems.
Transaid’s core work includes creating transport management systems for the public sector and assisting with the provision of professional driving qualification development and the training of driver trainers. It also assists with teaching preventive vehicle maintenance management and introducing local, low cost transport solutions including its innovative bicycle ambulance. Transaid also helps promote HIV, AIDS and road safety awareness and shares its specialist knowledge with the humanitarian aid sector.
Transaid enjoys strong backing from the transport and logistics industry and the active involvement of its patron, HRH The Princess Royal.
For further press information:
Caroline Beaumont at Transaid on +44 (0)20 7387 8136
James Keeler at Garnett Keeler on +44 (0)20 8399 1184
TRAN/102/06
