Not looking properly is the most common contributory factor to pedestrian injuries in road accidents, and phone distraction is raising the risk.

In response the council has launched a campaign to highlight that taking a moment to look and listen for traffic is always more important than hitting that like button or sharing the latest clips and celebrity gossip.

Chair of Road Safety Councillor Julia Marrs said: “Smartphones have changed the world and brought many benefits but the stats show pedestrian distraction is a serious factor in too many road accidents.

“We all now recognise that drivers using their phones while at the wheel are putting themselves and others at risk but we need to realise just a moment's distraction can also be a danger when walking, especially when crossing the road.”

The council campaign will be taking the safety message to social media, and also to the wider public through street signs and leaflets at selected locations.

There are 23,000 pedestrian casualties recorded in road accidents in the UK every year. Around 5,000 of those individuals are seriously injured or killed.

A report published by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) in August 2018 identified failure to look as the most common contributory factor in pedestrian injury accidents which is replicated within South Lanarkshire.

The core message is enjoy your phone but be wise and when you are near the road - Look, don’t Like! Be smarter than your smartphone!

The Distractions for Pedestrians page on the council website has more information.