Firstly, we would like to wish you all the compliments of the festive season, a happy Christmas and a peaceful New Year.
We thought we would share a little bit of information with you as an overview of what has been happening this year for us, and some of our plans for next year.
The holiday season is always a worrying time on the roads, as more journeys are made, to the shops and to visit relatives for example, the days are shorter and the dark nights longer, the weather is cooler and can pose additional problems on the roads, and, unfortunately, there is often an increase in the number of drivers who have consumed alcohol or drugs.
All this week, both the Guardia Civil and Local Police have been out in force carrying out intensified checks for drivers who have got behind the wheel having consumed alcohol or drugs, with a target of 25,000 tests each day. Those checks will continue right through the holiday season. Although the permitted alcohol limit in Spain is lower than that of the UK, the best advice, as always, is if you are going to drive, don´t consume any alcohol or drugs.
We would like to thank you for your support of the N332 Road Safety project so far. Both the Facebook page and the website have grown considerably in a short space of time, proving to everybody involved that there is a need for the information we share, and your appreciation of it.
We have had an interesting year as well. We have spoken to a number of groups about road safety, such as the Royal British Legion in Spain, the Association of Retired Police Officers and the ADAPT association. We also gave two presentations to international residents in the Orihuela Costa town hall, one to an English speaking group, the other to German speakers. Only this week, to the pupils of El Limonar International School. In January we already have a talk scheduled with the CLARO group on the Orihuela Costa, and will also be giving talks to the clients of IBEX insurance, as well as others that we are scheduling now.
We also met with the new Vice Consul for the Alicante area in the British Consulate, to see how we can work together in sharing their information as well as being present in some of their talks, another positive move to spread the word of safety to others.
We published our first eBook, The New Rules of the Road, which details some of the changes to traffic laws in Spain, which we have been able to do thanks to the support of our sponsors, Al Andalus Car Hire, Mercury FM, Autos Direct, IBEX Insurance and PSI Consultants.
When the eBook was launched at the start of December, we decided that all of the proceeds, with the exception of VAT/IVA and a small credit card processing fee, would go to help those in need this Christmas, namely at the Elche Children´s Home.
This week, the proceeds donated so far were spent on creating a unique event for the children, where the officers from the Guardia Civil traffic department played a football tournament against the children.
All of the children (who beat the Guardia Civil by the way) were given a football shirt, trophy, footballs and then a celebratory party afterwards with all the food laid on as part of the day´s event.
Your generosity made that possible and made every one of those children raise a smile and enjoy a special day that will stick in their mind for a long time.
By the way, the eBook is still available and we will continue to donate ALL of the proceeds received up until the night of the Three Kings to the children´s home. You can find out more about the book, and purchase it if you haven´t already, on the website, n332.es/ebook.
By Easter, we will have another eBook available, and we are talking to other charities to see how we can offer them some support from those proceeds.
Traffic law changes all the time, there are some changes which come into force in January, which we will tell you about shortly too. Therefore, we will continue into 2016 with the positive message of safer roads for all by sharing the information with you, and these email newsletters will be a regular occurrence, as well as the videos we are producing, complimenting the information we post. It is because of your appreciation and your support that we do this, because together we can make the roads safer for all.
We have a few opportunities for businesses to support our future projects too. If you have a business and would be interested in sponsoring us in exchange for advertising on our website, future eBooks or our monthly newsletter, please get in touch by emailing admin@n332.es or visiting n332.es/about-us/advertise/
Please keep checking the website for regular updates and, if you´re on Facebook, make sure you follow the DrivingSpain page, where you can interact with the Guardia Civil traffic officers who post their articles on a regular basis.
All that is left for this newsletter to once again wish you a very happy, peaceful and safe Christmas and New Year.