Major of London Sir Sadiq Khan has been urged to increase efforts to reduce deaths on the capital’s roads and transport network after new figures showed just three fewer people were killed or seriously injured in 2024 compared to the previous year.
Harrow Online says the Mayor of London has pledged to eliminate all deaths and serious casualties outright by 2041 as part of his Vision Zero Action Plan. He has also set an interim deadline of 2030 to reduce the figure by 70 per cent from the 2010-2014 baseline figure of 4,870 to 1,461.
However, 3,707 people were killed or seriously injured on London’s roads in 2024, three fewer than the 3,710 victims in the year before and just a 24 per cent reduction from over a decade ago. In their annual Travel in London report this week, TfL admitted that “more needs to be done” but said it was still the “lowest figure outside the pandemic years”.
Green Party London Assembly Member Caroline Russell told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “Bereaved families and Londoners with life changing injuries are paying the unacceptable price of systemic danger on our roads.
“Transport for London knows it is not on track to meet their Vision Zero target of no one being killed or seriously injured on the road by 2041 and needs to push ahead with urgent measures to reduce road harm. They could roll out 20mph speed limits everywhere, introduce more pedestrian crossings, and fix lethal junctions to reduce traffic danger across London.
“Everyone, especially children, older and disabled people, should be able to cross the road to get to school, catch a bus to work or pick up pint of milk confident they’ll get home safely.”
In 2018, a joint action plan was published by the Mayor, TfL and the Met Police outlining the steps needed to eliminate deaths and serious injuries from the transport network. This included implementing a 20mph limit on all TfL roads within the Congestion Charging Zone by 2020, transforming dangerous junctions and setting tougher safety standards for HGVs and buses.
However, campaigners have argued that driver behaviour and ignoring speed limits is still proving an issue.
Jeremy Leach from safety campaign group Action Vision Zero told the LDRS: “London is ahead of other UK cities in its efforts to reduce road casualties but has a huge amount of work to do to reach the Mayor of London’s 2041 target that no one will be killed or seriously injured on our roads. The latest version of London’s Vision Zero Action Plan is due out early in 2026.
“To be effective we need to see more drivers sticking to the new lower 20mph speed limits, less traffic, more enforcement of careless and dangerous driving by the Met and much safer town centres and high streets especially on the roads that TfL manages.”
A spokesperson from Roadpeace, a charity for road crash victims, added: “Any reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on London’s roads is positive, yet the latest figures highlight that progress remains limited.
“The data shows London is not currently on course to meet its Vision Zero targets, and this is a reminder of the continued need for sustained focus on road danger reduction. Every serious injury or death has a profound and lasting impact on those affected, and we support all efforts to accelerate improvements in road safety across the capital.”
(Picture: Yay Images)
