FedEx, Safe Kids Team Up to Launch “Walk This Way” in Suzhou

SUZHOU, December 16, 2009 – FedEx Express (FedEx), a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and one of the world’s largest express transportation companies, today joined hands with Safe Kids Worldwide, a global non-profit organization, to launch the Safe Kids Walk This Way program in Suzhou at Chongdao Primary School.

Following its successful launch in major Chinese cities including Shanghai , Beijing and Guangzhou , the child pedestrian safety program marks the first initiative of its kind in Suzhou . Six hundred seventy students and 16 FedEx volunteers, along with officials from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC), participated in the event.

FedEx and Safe Kids first created the Walk This Way program in the United States in 1999 with the aim of promoting child pedestrian safety. Since being introduced to China in April 2004, the program has brought pedestrian safety education to more than 1.8 million students and parents in China .

At the launch event, students from Chongdao Primary School and FedEx volunteers called for increased action to improve road safety in order to ensure a safer school zone. To help meet these goals, Safe Kids and FedEx co-donated the Walk This Way road safety curriculum to 100 Suzhou primary schools.

At the launch event, FedEx volunteers played road safety games with the students and practiced safe walking exercises, arming students with basic pedestrian behavior and road safety knowledge.

According to a report released by Safe Kids Worldwide, road accidents have become the second largest killer of children aged 14 and under in China. An average of more than 30,000 children are injured or killed in traffic accidents every year. Of these, nearly 44 percent are child pedestrians. Consequently, enhancing child pedestrian safety education and raising awareness of road safety is urgently needed.

The rapid expansion of Suzhou ‘s economy and city scale has led to an increasing number of vehicles, worsening the city’s traffic situation. The transportation facilities and urban traffic network need to be improved and public awareness of road safety needs to increase.

A Safe Kids survey of more than 500 students in Suzhou ’s Chongdao Primary School indicates several key pedestrian risks in the city:

· About thirty percent of the students walk alone to school every day.

· Ten percent of the students believe it is “safe” to cross the street anywhere if there is no vehicle on the street.

· Nearly sixty percent of the students felt the crossroad is the most dangerous area for walking.

· The students noted there are no traffic lights and no zebra crossing at the crossroads.

· The major safety problem is the vehicles that are jammed at the school gate.

· The students need to improve their road safety knowledge. Besides traffic lights, they need to recognize more traffic signs and understand how to cross the street safely.

The study clearly identifies the key areas needed for road safety education. In addition, the study points out that measures should be taken to improve the safety of streets while also educating drivers and students on road safety.

About FedEx Express

FedEx Express is one of the world’s largest express transportation companies, providing fast and reliable delivery to every U.S. address and to more than 220 countries and territories. FedEx Express uses a global air-and-ground network to speed delivery of time-sensitive shipments, by a definite time and date with a money-back guarantee[1].

About FedEx Corp.

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation, e-commerce and business services. With annual revenues of $34 billion, the company offers integrated business applications through operating companies competing collectively and managed collaboratively, under the respected FedEx brand. Consistently ranked among the world’s most admired and trusted employers, FedEx inspires its more than 275,000 team members to remain “absolutely, positively” focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards and the needs of their customers and communities. For more information, visit news.fedex.com.

About Safe Kids Worldwide

Safe Kids Worldwide is a global network of organization, whose mission is to prevent unintentional childhood injury, a leading killer of children ages 14 and under. Based on the U.S. model, which has contributed to a 45 percent decline in the rate of unintentional childhood injury deaths since its inception in 1987, more than 450 Safe Kids coalitions in 17 countries promote child safety by bringing together health and safety experts, educators, corporations, governments and volunteers to educate and protect families. For more information, visit http://www.safekidsworldwide.org

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[1] Subject to relevant terms and conditions