The media awaiting Richard and Phil's arrival in London.
It is an endurance task that would make even James Bond think twice. But British drivers Richard Meredith and Phil Colley have just become the first people in the world to cross the full Asian Highway – in James Bond’s favourite car, an Aston Martin - in a 16,000 km drive in support of the Make Roads Safe campaign.
The school teacher and tour operator arrived in London after an epic journey crossing 16 countries to be met by the media at a press conference hosted by Aston Martin’s Chief Executive Ulrich Bez.
During the 50 days it took to complete the journey, 150,000 people were killed on the world’s roads – a figure which includes 25,000 children. Yet Meredith, 58 and Colley, 42 who took on the drive to support the Make Roads Safe campaign, say that this scale of death toll is preventable.
Richard Meredith, a teacher, said: “We were shocked at the staggering number of people who die on the roads every day. The problem is at such a level now that road crashes have become the number one killer of young people worldwide. Many developing countries, like the ones we have driven through across Asia, have accident rates on their roads which are far too high. The death toll could be lowered if proper resources were put into basic safety measures such as crash barriers and pedestrian crossings.”
London travel specialist Colley said: “There’s been much talk of once again stepping up aid to the developing world. As we upgrade roads like those on the Asian Highway we have to make sure that we don’t end up killing even more people. Action can be taken on this. We want people to join us in signing the Make Roads Safe petition for the UN to start addressing this public health emergency through a Ministerial meeting.”
Aston Martin provided the car, counting the journey towards an ongoing long distance testing programme which would have been undertaken on European motorways, and together with other sponsors, including Intercontinental Hotels and Bridgestone, has used the journey to raise money for a UNICEF – led road safety programme for children in China. The car will also be auctioned in support of UNICEF.
Read about Phil Colley's experiences on the road.
Official website: Driving Home Road Safety 2007