New report highlights regional variations

25 February 2011

England tops the UK road safety league table with the lowest rate for deaths on the roads, ahead of Scotland and Wales, with Northern Ireland firmly at the bottom, according to a report published today by RoadSafe partner the IAM.

The report: ‘Comparisons -- England’s regions, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland’ shows substantial differences in the safety of roads and levels of car ownership around the UK. England’s north - south divide is also a significant factor.

In England the north east and the north west are the safest places to drive, while the east Midlands is the most dangerous.

While England’s northern regions are the safest, they are at the bottom of the car ownership league table -- more than a quarter of households don’t own a car. Over 80 per cent of households in the south east and the south west own one or more. Overall in England car ownership fell in 2009, in Wales there was no change, and in Scotland there was a modest increase on 2008.

IAM director of policy and research Neil Greig who is also a RoadSafe adviser said: “While the UK is now top of the European road safety league, the risk of being killed on UK roads varies considerably around the country. Road deaths in Northern Ireland are twice that of north east England.

The IAM report Comparisons - England’s regions, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in its series IAM Motoring Facts 2011 can be downloaded here.