UK road casualties lowest on record

The UK Department for Transport (DfT) has announced that the number of people killed in road accidents reported to the police fell by 16% from 2,222 in 2009 to 1,857 in 2010 – the lowest figure since national records began in 1926. A total of 22,660 people were seriously injured in reported road accidents (a reduction of 8%) while 184,138 people were slightly injured (a reduction of 6%). The 2010 figures are significant because they confirm that casualty reduction targets set in 2000 have been surpassed.
April 19, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSThe UK 1837 Department for Transport (DfT) has announced that the number of people killed in road accidents reported to the police fell by 16% from 2,222 in 2009 to 1,857 in 2010 – the lowest figure since national records began in 1926. A total of 22,660 people were seriously injured in reported road accidents (a reduction of 8%) while 184,138 people were slightly injured (a reduction of 6%). The 2010 figures are significant because they confirm that casualty reduction targets set in 2000 have been surpassed.

Despite the overall reduction in casualties, there was a very disappointing rise in the number of cyclists killed - to 111, an increase of seven (7%) on 2009. The number of cyclists seriously injured also increased, by 2% to 2,660. However, it is worth noting that the numbers of cyclists using UK roads continues to increase and particularly for commuting in some urban areas. There was also a disappointing 24% increase in goods vehicle occupants killed - up from 50 to 62.

The number of children who were killed fell by a third (from 81 to 55). There were also reductions in the number of children who were injured.

Related Content

  • June 30, 2016
    Downward trend in Scotland’s road casualties ‘good news’ says IAM Roadsmart
    Independent road safety charity IAM RoadSmart has responded to Transport Scotland’s release of provisional headline figures for road casualties in Scotland, saying it is good news that the long term downward trends in deaths and serious injuries on Scotland’s roads continue but the figures are still far too high. The figures for road casualties reported to the police in Scotland in 2015 show that the total number of casualties fell by three per cent between 2014 and 2015 from 11,307 to 10,950, to the lo
    Read More
  • July 1, 2016
    UK road safety’ is stagnating’ – IAM and RoSPA call for new strategy
    Independent road safety charity IAM RoadSmart and safety charity the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) have called for government action following the release of the Department for Transport’s (DfT) reported road casualties in Great Britain 2015. The 2015 figures show there were 1,732 reported road deaths – two per cent fewer compared with 2014. According to the DfT, this is the second lowest annual total on record after 2013. The number of people seriously injured in reported road tr
    Read More
  • July 12, 2012
    Deaths up and road safety spending down in England
    Fifty local councils in England saw more than a ten per cent increase in killed and seriously injured (KSI) crash rates between 2010 and 2011, according to an Institute for Advanced Motorists (IAM) analysis of the new road accident figures. The biggest increases in KSI numbers were in St Helens – 62 per cent, Portsmouth – 57 per cent, Stoke on Trent – 57 per cent, and Coventry – 51 per cent. A further 76 councils saw increases in the KSI rate above the national average of two per cent.
    Read More
  • August 5, 2016
    Urgent action needed as drink-drive figures stall, says Brake
    UK road safety charity Brake is calling on the government to take urgent action after figures released by the Department for Transport (DfT) show little change in the number of people killed because of drink-driving. Government figures reveal that the number of deaths involving a driver under the influence of alcohol was 240 in 2014. That figure has been consistently been reported since 2010 and looks set to continue if the provisional estimate for the 2015 figures proves to be accurate (200-290 killed).
    Read More

Highlighted Content