Policy Hub
On 29 October 2008, the House of Commons Transport Committee published a report (Ending the scandal of complacency: road safety beyond 2010) which highlights the need for a much bolder strategy to address road safety.
The report expresses concern about the high accident rates among male drivers, younger drivers and on rural roads as well as the continuing links between poverty and road deaths. It cites evidence that child pedestrians from the lowest socio-economic groups are 21 times more likely to be killed in a traffic accident than those from the top socio-economic groups.
Although 2007 saw a 7% fall in road user deaths, the report points out that overall progress since 2000 has been disappointing. Little improvement has been made in reducing deaths among car users and there has been a significant rise in motorcyclist deaths, which rose by 26% between 1994-1998 and 2007.
According to government statistics, serious injuries are falling much more rapidly than deaths. The report questions the accuracy of injury data and considers whether the government is really going to meet its road safety targets. Concern about changes in the reporting of accidents prompts the Transport Committee to call for a review to find ways of linking police and hospital statistics as a matter of routine.
Giving local authorities additional powers and resources to introduce 20mph limits more widely would be one way to satisfy the desires of local communities for safer streets, the report concludes.
Amongst the report’s other recommendations, it suggests that the government should:
Ending the scandal of complacency: road safety beyond 2010 (PDF)