Has the economic recession facilitated a reduction in road traffic accidents?

5 June 2015

Multiple sources of information and evidence have been collated including STATS19 road accident data, population data, socio-demographic data, economic patterns, weather trends and traffic and vehicle data. 

Summary analyses of these data sources show a reduction in overall traffic, a large reduction in HGV traffic, a reduction in young male drivers, a reduction in speeding, and a reduction in drink driving during the recession period.

All of these reductions can be associated with a reduction in fatal accidents and have led to the conclusion that the economic recession changed behaviours in such a way that fewer people were killed on the roads in Britain during this period. 

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