Road Safety Guide
Did you know
Many lives are claimed as a result of road crashes/incidents.
- Between 30% - 40% of all accidents in Great Britain occur on the road
- Around 28,673 people were killed or seriously injured on Great Britain's roads in 2006. Of this figure, 3,294 involved children aged between 0 and 15 years
- Around 1.2 million people die on roads throughout the world each year
- Of those seriously injured, many suffer permanent disabilities, such as the loss of a limb, loss or damage to eyesight, disfigurement etc.
- Great Britain's overall road casualty record is one of the lowest in Europe, but our child safety record is not good.
When and where you are traveling is a factor.
- The most dangerous hours on the roads on weekdays are the rush hours from 7am - 9am and 3pm - 6pm
- Most road crashes/incidents happen in daylight
- A large majority of road crashes/incidents happen in built up areas
- Children are particularly vulnerable during the summer months, during summer holidays, where they spend more time playing outside or traveling around
- Environmental problems, such as bad weather conditions, reduced visibility and congestion are a contributing factor in around 18% of road crashes/incidents
- Poorly maintained roads, pot holes, bumps and cracks also cause problems, especially for cyclists.
Most road casualties could be prevented if people took care and used simple common sense actions.
Human error is a factor in 95% of all road crashes/incidents, for a number of different reasons.
Incidents involving children (0-15 years old) most often occur as a result of:
- Lack of parental/adult supervision
- Small physical stature
- Emotional immaturity, being stressed or upset
- Spirit of adventure
- Lack of knowledge of the world and its dangers
- Lack of road safety training
- Inability to judge speed and distance
- Lack of attention, being easily distracted.
Most road casualties could be prevented if people took care and used simple common sense actions.
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