IAM Roadsmart: drivers must be more alert to protect pedestrians

UK charity IAM RoadSmart is urging drivers to be more alert as pedestrians now make up a quarter of all road deaths on the country’s roads. IAM refers to figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) for 2016 – the most recent figures available - which revealed 448 pedestrians were killed. This is an increase of 10% over 2015 - the DfT says drivers failed to look in 42% of crashes while pedestrians did not look in 54% incidents. In addition, a fifth of drivers failed to judge the other perso
May 25, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
UK charity IAM RoadSmart is urging drivers to be more alert as pedestrians now make up a quarter of all road deaths on the country’s roads.


IAM refers to figures released by the 1837 Department for Transport (DfT) for 2016 – the most recent figures available - which revealed 448 pedestrians were killed. This is an increase of 10% over 2015 - the DfT says drivers failed to look in 42% of crashes while pedestrians did not look in 54% incidents.

In addition, a fifth of drivers failed to judge the other person’s path or speed in car collisions while 17% of pedestrians made the same mistake before a fatal or serious impact.

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart’s director of policy and research, says while blame may not be easy to assign, drivers must adopt a special responsibility for looking for the safety of those on foot.

However, Greig also recognised that walking carelessly or hurrying is a contributing factor in pedestrian injuries and deaths.

Greig suggests: “Observing the body language of pedestrians will give drivers a clue of their intentions. For example, a pedestrian looking over their shoulder may be looking for a suitable gap to cross the road and anyone with their head buried in a smartphone or wearing headphones is at extra risk.”

Greig explains research on vision has found children of primary school age find it difficult to see or judge the speed of vehicles accurately.

“Slowing down around pedestrians and constantly scanning for clues to their intention is essential if we are to reduce the growing toll of pedestrian fatalities on our roads,” Greig adds.

Urban Traffic Control

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • One in ten drivers admit to driving on autopilot
    February 20, 2014
    The Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) is urging motorists to beware of the perils of driving on autopilot following research which shows that one in ten drivers are often unable to remember their entire car journey. The poll of almost 1,500 drivers, carried out by Vision Critical on behalf of the IAM, also revealed that 54 per cent of drivers admitted to missing a turning because they were distracted. A further 14 per cent of drivers are quite often unable to recall any part of their journey in the
    Read More
  • Haas applies C-V2X to school bus safety
    June 28, 2021
    Haas says digital alerts enhance student safety by lowering collision risk up to 90%
    Read More
  • CCTV brings transit safety into view
    September 15, 2014
    David Crawford looks at camera-based vulnerable road users protection systems.Safe and efficient operation of road-based transit depends on minimising the risks of incidents involving other vehicles or vulnerable road users such as pedestrians, cyclists and passengers boarding or alighting from buses or trams. The extent and quality of the visibility available to drivers is crucial in preventing and avoiding incidents. Conventionally, they have had to rely on fairly basic equipment - essentially the human
    Read More
  • Aimsun unveils test platform for AVs in digital cities
    May 24, 2019
    Aimsun has released a software platform for the large-scale design and validation of path planning algorithms for autonomous vehicles (AV). The company says Aimsun Auto allows test vehicles to drive inside digital cities - virtual copies of transportation networks, where users can safely explore the limits of AV technology. Paolo Rinelli, global head of product management at Aimsun, says Auto removes the need to drive around seeking conditions that users want to test or to “script each actor’s behaviour
    Read More

Highlighted Content