Deaths hit record low
The number of deaths on Britain’s roads has fallen below 3,000 for the first time since records began more than 80 years ago...
The 2007 road casualty statistics reveal that there were 247,780 road casualties in total, 4% less than in 2006
However, while road safety campaigners have welcomed the 7% fall in roads deaths in 2007 to 2,943 (2006: 3,172), they say further action continues to be required to drive the casualty toll down further including the targeting of high-risk groups such as at-work drivers; improved training for motoryclists; a reduction in the drink-drive limit; and improved seat belt and mobile phone law enforcement.
The 2007 road casualty statistics published by the Department for Transport also reveal that there were 247,780 road casualties in total, 4% less than in 2006.
Fewer
However, while there were fewer deaths of cylists (down 7% to 136 last year) and motorcylists (2% down at 588), the number of seriously injured people on two wheels increased – the only sectors where rises were recorded.
The number of seriously injured cylists increased 6% to 2,428 and the number of seriously injured motorcyclists rose 4% to 6,149. The total number of motorcycle casualties was also 1% higher at 23,459.
There were 182,115 road crashes involving personal injury in 2007, 4% fewer than in 2006. Of these, 27,036 incidents involved death or serious injury, 3% fewer than in 2006 (27,872). Kevin Clinton, head of road safety at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, described the overall reduction in road casualties as ‘wonderful news’. But he warned there was no room for complacency.
Referring to the rise on injuries to motorcyclists, Mr Clinton said: “We still need to see improvements in motorcycle training and riders need to develop skills and experience if they are riding more powerful machines.
“Drivers too can benefit from refresher driver training which can iron out bad habits they may have unwittingly developed over the years. Measures such as reducing the drink-drive limit and changing our clocks to bring us lighter evenings all-year-round would also have a major impact on reducing deaths and injuries.”
Neil Greig, director of the IAM Motoring Trust, said: “There is no place for complacency in road safety. But national targets and the concentration on the simple message of the three ‘E’s of education, enforcement and engineering have delivered safer roads than ever before.
“The challenge now is to drive down these figures even further by targeting known high risks such as rural single carriageways, young drivers and those who drive for work. Further reductions in deaths on the road will not come cheap and Government must allocate more funding to road engineering schemes and actively encourage drivers to treat driving as a skill for life.”
Action
Agreement for further action came from AA president Edmund King, who said: “The battle to cut death and injury on the road must go on and it will get tougher to reduce the numbers still further. In the short term much can be done by better enforcing the drink-drive, seat belt and mobile phone laws.”
Road deaths peaked in 1941 when 9,169 people were killed and began to rise again in the 1960s with 7,985 people dying in 1966. When data was first published in 1926 there were 4,886 people killed, but only 1.7 million vehicles on the road, compared with more than 33 million today.
Progress
Mr Clinton said: “The progress we have made since then is a tribute to road safety professionals working in local authorities and the police forces, and shows the value of having long-term, Government-led road safety strategies. Technological advances in the motor industry have also played a very significant role.”
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders singled out improvements in passive safety – systems designed to protect occupants in a crash including airbags and crumple zones - as being particularly significant in reducing crash casualty numbers.
It predicted that with more cars now being fitted with active safety systems – designed to prevent a crash from happening – such as lane departure warnings, assisted braking systems and ESC (electronic stability control) that works to prevent cars from skidding out of control, casualty numbers could decline further.