Buses across the Thames Valley are carrying a hard-hitting message to motorists to slow down, for safety's sake.

Three buses in Oxfordshire are among ten in the region displaying the message that three people are killed every week on the roads in Thames Valley.

The campaign is the latest stage of a police Safer Roads Campaign, which aims to reduce casualties on the region's roads.

As speed is a factor in at least a third of all collisions, the campaign is using increased speed enforcement to reduce casualties.

This is backed up by publicity reminding drivers about the dangers of driving too quickly.

Insp Malcolm Collis, who is leading the campaign, said: "We hope that drivers will take note of the alarming fact that three people die every week in collisions. This is something they have the power to change simply by slowing down. "We hope these bus advertisements will give drivers pause for thought and encourage them to make an important contribution to road safety."

He said 30 people were also injured each week on Thames Valley roads.

The Safer Roads Campaign is a partnership between police, magistrates courts, local councils and the Crown Prosecution Service.

The partnership was one of only seven across the country chosen by the Government to run the two-year campaign as part of a pilot project. The Safer Roads Campaign is funded by using part of the fines revenue generated by roadside speed camera fixed penalty tickets.

In the first three months of the two-year project, from April to June, there was a 4.8 per cent reduction in the number of casualties on the roads of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire.