Returning troops' safety drive

Published on Tuesday 8 December 2009 21:00

SOLDIERS returning from duty in Afghanistan are to be given road safety training in the run-up to Christmas, police said yesterday.

The move is intended to help troops adapt to the "theatre of life" after the "theatre of war".

Black Watch soldiers, who are in Helmand, Afghanistan, will be given the training by Northern Constabulary officers. The army wants to provide "after-care" to troops returning from duty.

The driving courses will focus on the dangers of drink-driving. Many of the troops are young and statistically the most likely to be involved in a car accident.

The returning soldiers will be used to driving in a "lawless state" with few roads and may struggle to adapt to driving at home, a force spokesman said.

In July this year Scott Bain, 21, of The Highlanders, 4th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland, was killed in a crash while on leave from Germany.