HANGZHOU, April 21, 2007 – FedEx Express (FedEx), a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and the world’s largest express transportation company, today joined hands with Safe Kids to launch the Safe Kids Walk This Way program in Hangzhou at Changjiang Primary School.
Following its successful launch in major Chinese cities including Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Wuhan, it marks the first initiative of its kind in Hangzhou. More than 100 students and nearly 20 FedEx volunteers alongside officials from the Hangzhou municipal government participated in the event.
FedEx and Safe Kids first created the Walk This Way program in the United States with the aim of promoting child pedestrian safety. Since being introduced to China in April 2004, the program has been conducted in more than 2,000 schools and more than one million students and parents in China have received pedestrian safety education.
At the launch event, students from Changjiang Primary School and FedEx volunteers called for further improvements of road safety and measures to ensure a safer school zone. To help meet these goals, Safe Kids and FedEx co-donated a Walk This Way road safety curriculum to the school.
Following the launch event, FedEx volunteers played road safety games with the students and practiced safe walking exercises in a nearby street, arming students with basic pedestrian behavior and road safety knowledge.
“FedEx has long been committed to supporting child pedestrian safety education. We not only deliver fast and reliable service in China, but also care for the community where we live and work,” said Ricky Liu, managing director of operations, domestic service, FedEx China. “Today, we are introducing Safe Kids Walk This Way program to Hangzhou after the FedEx China Regional Hub was established at Hangzhou Xiaoshan International Airport last year. In China, more than six hundred FedEx employees have volunteered to educate children about pedestrian safety. We will continue to expand this meaningful program to more places in China.”
“It has been proven in many countries and regions that the number of traffic accidents can be reduced by improving the public awareness of traffic safety, people’s behaviors,” said Monica Cui, director, Safe Kids China. “With this program carried out here in Hangzhou, we expect the public to care for the children pedestrians and help prevent them from being injured or killed.”
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. The report suggests that careless road crossing is the largest cause of road injury. Consequently, enhancing child pedestrian safety education and raising awareness of road safety is urgent needed.
A study by Safe Kids surveying 500 primary students in Hangzhou indicates several key pedestrian risks in the city:
Nearly twenty-six percent of the students noted damage to the sidewalks, which are occupied by motor vehicles, garbage cans and small stalls.
Twenty-three percent of the students claimed that vehicles occupied the zebra crossing when they crossed road.
All the student respondents noticed that about thirty percent of drivers competed with pedestrians at the intersection. The drivers did not use their horn to warn pedestrians and even went beyond stop lines and jammed intersections when they were waiting for a green light.
Less than thirty percent of the students can correctly identify traffic safety signs such as “Construction.”
The study clearly identifies the key areas needed for road safety education. In addition, the study points out that efforts should be made to improve the safety of road environments while also educating the vehicle drivers.
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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 $37 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 290,000 employees and contractors to remain absolutely, positively focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards and the needs of their customers and communities.