The RAC and other organisations have reacted to the latest Department for Transport figures on road deaths and injuries from 2023.
RAC road safety spokesperson Rod Dennis said: “Thankfully, this latest data shows overall casualty and fatality levels are down compared to 12 months earlier, and significantly down on a decade ago – despite a return to the number of miles being driven pre-pandemic. It also confirms that motorways are safer than any other type of road, especially compared to rural roads.
“But behind the headline figures there are some important points to note, such as the fact that men are far more likely to be killed or injured on our roads than women, and that pedestrian fatalities and those involving young people appear to be rising.
“Britain might have an enviable international reputation when it comes to road safety, but this latest data still shows there’s room for improvement. We hope the new government’s forthcoming road safety strategy will help to reduce fatality and casualty numbers further.”
Also speaking about the figures, RoadPeace said: “Figures released by the Department for Transport show little year-on-year change in the number of people being killed or seriously injured on our roads. Not enough is being done to bring these figures down. Complacency about road death and injury must end now.”
Commenting on the latest Reported Road Collisions data for 2023, James Broun, Research Manager at RoSPA said:
“While we’re pleased to see road fatalities fall by 5% on 2022, sadly 1,624 people still died on the roads last year – an unacceptably high figure following years of stagnation in fatality reduction. We are particularly concerned that when we include the number of people seriously injured on the roads, the overall figure (29,711) has shown virtually no improvement over the last year.
“It’s important to put this into context. Although it’s good to see that road fatalities have decreased by 9% over the past decade, this is a marked slowdown compared to the 47% reduction achieved in the previous ten years. Taking a longer view, it’s clear that without a comprehensive road safety strategy in place, momentum has been lost. We urge the Government to take decisive action and commit to a robust, evidence-based plan to prevent further unnecessary deaths and serious injuries on our roads.”
PIC-RAC
