Top 10 Transport Safety Videos

As Christmas is the time of top 10 anything you can think of, I've put together my top 10 transport safety videos. I'm not a great fan of the shock and horror tactics and you'll see that reflected here. As with all top 10's not everyone will agree, so please feel free to let me know any that you thought should/shouldn't have made the list.

1. Embrace Life

2. Dumb Ways to Die

3. Speeding: No-one Thinks Big of You

4. Know It Alls

5. Awareness Test

6. Test Your Awareness: Whodunnit?

7. Big Tits Girls Flash

8. Two Second Mistake

9. Steamed Up

10. Just Because

Office Christmas Party? Leave the car at home

So you’ve picked the venue, the food, your outfit, who you’re going to try to catch (or avoid!) under the mistletoe, but have you thought about how you’re going to get home and, if it’s going to be a late night, how you’ll get to work in the morning?

Whether it’s a sit-down meal at lunchtime or a let-your-hair-down night on the dance floor, or anything in between, the office Christmas ‘do’ will no doubt involve a drink or two…or more.  Even a small amount of alcohol will affect your ability to drive and last year, over the Christmas period, 110 drivers in Cambridgeshire were arrested having failed a breath test.  Many of these drivers were stopped by police the morning after they had been out, not realising that they were still over the limit. 

Your body will take approximately one hour to process one unit of alcohol starting about an hour after you finish drinking. 

So, if you’ve had three large (250ml) glasses of wine it could be up to 12 hours before all the alcohol is out of your system, depending on the strength of the wine.  No ‘magic’ hangover cure will speed up this process, even if it does make you feel better, so the best advice is to leave the car at home on the day of the party and the morning after.  Why not take the bus, train or a taxi instead?

Have You Ever Made The Two Second Mistake?

I had the pleasure of being involved in the development of this video and seeing it performed live. It was great to see the buzz in the audience afterwards.

It is a really important message so please share it and let us know what you think. :)

If it can happen to Bradley Wiggins and Shane Sutton is cycling really dangerous?

Following news of cycling accidents to Tour de France and Olympic gold medal winning cyclist Bradley Wiggins and his head coach Shane Sutton within the space of 24 hours, I wanted to do a quick blog on cycle safety.  I'm not going to be able to cover all the issues by any stretch, but here's a few to be getting on with.

Firstly, I want to wish both Bradley Wiggins and Shane Sutton a speedy recovery from their injuries. Secondly, I want to raise the question:

If the most experienced of cyclists can be involved these accidents does it mean that cycling is dangerous?

In my opinion, the simple answer is no.  But there are some complexities to the issue, which provide barriers for would-be cyclists.

What is the risk?

Risk can be measured in a number of ways, one of the main ones used in transport is casualties per billion vehicle miles.  In the last 10 years the number of deaths per billion miles traveled by cyclists has fallen from around 50 to around 40, which basically means cycle fatalities are rare.  To put this in context with other road users the rate is almost the same for pedestrians but for car occupants it is about 3.5 and for motorcyclists it is about 130.  This, however doesn't take into account the fact that you are likely to travel further by bike than you would on foot, and further by car or motorbike than you would by bike.

Source: Department for Transport - Reported Road Casualties 2011

On the face of it then, purely in transport terms, cycling is a bit more risky than walking, but less risky than being in a car.

Vulnerable road user

Cyclists, along with pedestrians and motorcyclists, are classed as vulnerable road users, this is because they aren't afforded the luxury of a protective metal shell that car occupants have.  In an interview today on BBC 5 Live (from about 1:05:30) I heard Paralympic cyclist Jody Cundy put it rather well:

"...as cyclists we're pretty exposed and pretty soft...we're not protected in a big steel cocoon...a little scratch on a car is quite different to broken ribs, elbows, arms...or anything worse that could happen..."

Looking at it like this it is understandable why people consider cycling to be dangerous.  However, this is only half the picture.

Health benefits

Cycling has huge health benefits, including reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke related to inactivity.  These benefits have been shown to outweigh the risks by 20 to one.

Source: ECF - Cycling and Health: What's the Evidence

Overcoming the barriers

The problem is people think cycling is very dangerous, and therefore don't do it.  The fact is, with proper on-road training such as Bikeability, which will improve both skills and confidence, and an understanding of the infrastructure that is in place, cycling is a healthy and enjoyable way to get around.

Yes, more needs to be done at a national level to improve safety for cyclists.  Yes, the infrastructure needs investment, and I hope it gets the investment it needs.  But, there also needs to be more respect between motorists and cyclists.  The Department for Transport recently launched a new 'Let's look out for each other' Think! Cycling campaign which aims to target this, particularly as most cyclists are also motorists.

'What if?'

Finally, accidents can and do happen even to the best of cyclists, therefore it is important for cyclists to do what they can to protect themselves.  I'm not going to go through the ins and outs of the helmet wearing debate as I've already covered my views in a previous post, and as the law stands currently it is up to individuals to choose for themselves.  As much as I've just argued that cycling isn't that dangerous, I would always ask myself 'what if?'

WARNING: Counterfeit Child Car Seats Putting Lives At Risk

I've been alerted to the results of an alarming crash test carried out by TRL on a counterfeit child car seat.

Counterfeit seats are increasingly being sold online to unsuspecting parents and grandparents who assume to be getting a genuine seat at a bargain price.  As you can see the consequences of buying a counterfeit seat could be fatal so here's a few pointers to help you steer clear:

Regulation 44 label

1. Buy from a reputable retailer.
2. Check for the orange type approval sticker on the seat to show it meets requirements of Regulation 44 (right).
3. Check all the instructions and manuals are in English (often counterfeits will be written in very poor English).
4. If in doubt, ask an expert - the Good Egg Safety website includes an ask the expert section or you could speak directly to a retailer such as the In Car Safety Centre.
5. Finally, all you bargain hunters out there: If it looks too good to be true, it usually is!!

Hello Loughborough University

This week I have started the first module working towards a MSc in Road and Vehicle Safety, led by Dr Richard Frampton.  The course is being run from the stunning Loughborough Design School, which opened in September 2011.

Loughborough Design School

So far in the first module, 'Principles of Road and Vehicle Safety' taught by Dr Andrew Morris and Professor Brian Fildes, we have briefly looked at the history of Road Safety and a global perspective of the current and future problems the world faces.

This has highlighted something I have really failed to grasp properly in my time as a Road Safety Officer:  the scale of the global problem.  With the rapid growth in car ownership across developing nations such as China, India and Brazil, combined with poor infrastructure, we are likely to see a huge global rise in road fatalities over the next decade from 1.3 million to approximately 1.9 million per year.  This growth will see road traffic accidents become the third highest cause of disease and/or death.  Sobering stuff really!

More to follow this week, particularly looking in more detail at the 'Safe System Approach' rather than the 'Transportation Model' which has traditionally been used in the UK.

How do you stop the in-car 'domestic'?

This week a news piece by Road Safety GB highlighted research, led by Terry Lansdown at Heriot-Watt University, showing the significant adverse effects of couples arguing (having 'contentious conversations') while driving.  While this may seem obvious to many it is interesting that the research showed the effects were far worse with the driver's partner present in the vehicle rather than if the conversation took place using a hands-free kit.  You can purchase the report here.

Today I happened to come across this possible solution...enjoy!

View on Lockerz

Warning: May Cause Drowsiness

Having just developed a seasonal head cold (aka 'man flu'), I dragged myself into the supermarket on the way to work to select an appropriate remedy in order to try and get me through the day.  The cold and flu section was well stocked for the season so there was plenty to choose from and I spent a few minutes comparing the different products.

What caught my eye was that a number of products indicated that they may cause drowsiness.  Now, ordinarily that might be a good thing if you are holed up under the duvet to recover.  But for anyone out and about with a cold or flu, as many people are, it is important to remember that drowsiness and driving don't mix!

Prescription or over-the-counter drugs can affect your ability to drive in the same way as illegal drugs, and result in the same punishments by law in the UK.

If I hadn't been consciously looking with driving in mind I don't think I would've stopped to consider anything other than the remedial properties of the product.  So just a word of caution as winter approaches:  Check your medication to see if it could affect your ability to drive.  If in doubt check, with your GP or pharmacist.

"My Mum Says We Don't Really Need to Wear a Seatbelt on Short Journeys"

Last week I was involved in delivering an event to 9 and 10 year old children at a local fire station.  My colleagues and I were delivering in-car safety messages concentrating on the importance of wearing a seatbelt.

What continues to amaze me is the number of pupils who tell us they don't always wear a seatbelt, particularly on short journeys.  This is even more worrying as some of these children should still be using a booster seat.

The words of one pupil really stand out, and it's not the first time I've heard them:

"My mum says we don't really need to wear a seatbelt on short journeys."

It's not said proudly or shyly, just matter-of-fact, and it is at that point that I consider the magnitude of the task at hand.  We spend about 15 minutes with these pupils, and for this minority, and thankfully it is a minority, they already have a belief ingrained by their parents that we have little chance of changing.

According to the Department for Transport 89-95% of people in cars are observed wearing seatbelts, but that still means 1 in 10 to 1 in 20 aren't!  I don't think that figure has much chance of changing significantly unless we can change the behaviour of the adult role models.  It may be that diversionary courses that have been successful alternatives to other driving offences could work for seatbelts too, and I know this is being trialed in some areas.

Personally, I just can't understand a parent saying something like that to their children when it is a matter of their safety.  As a parent myself I would always be thinking "what if...?"

The driving test: Is it enough for young drivers?

Yesterday (4 Oct) saw the Association of British Insurers (ABI) call for "radical action" from the government to tackle the number of casualties among 17-24 year-olds, including proposals to ensure young drivers learn for a year before taking their test and restrictions on post-test driving.  But, if the driving test has been developed to ensure drivers have the skills to control a car, what is it that is missing?

Skill Acquisition and Driving Experience

The process of learning to drive can be split into two aspects: 1) the physical skills required to control the car; 2) the experience of how to act/react to changes in the road environment as they occur.

The skills to control a car have to be learned, and are memorised through hours of repetition as a learner driver.  These skills should become almost automatic by the time a driver takes their test.  In this respect, any driver who has passed their test should be able to control their vehicle to an acceptable level.

Experience is a very different matter though.  Learning to drive takes place in a more controlled environment, as there is always an instructor/parent etc. sitting in the seat next to you using their experience to warn the driver of any potential hazards.  Because of this supervision, the driver's behaviour is also likely to be different e.g. not listening to music.  However, once someone has passed their test, they no longer have someone sat next to them and they have to make all the decisions themselves.  Invariably, the stereo goes on and their friends are all invited for a ride.

Reducing the Risk

Statistics show that the risks reduce dramatically over the first 12 months of driving, so it is clear that valuable experience is learned relatively quickly, the problem is that 1 in 5 drivers will have a crash in the first 6 months of driving.

Over the past few years it seems that the government has tried to influence young drivers through insurance companies rather than legislative changes, but this has only led premiums to skyrocket while the problem has remained.  The only good thing to emerge from this, in my opinion, is the wider use of 'black box' technology as part of insurance premiums and/or to allow parents to monitor their children's driving more closely.

Therefore, I would agree with the ABI that "radical action" is required and that a graduated system of driver licensing should be introduced, to allow novice drivers to build up experience in lower-risk driving situations such as:

• restricting driving at night (23.00-04.00)
• restricting the carrying of passengers, particularly teenage passengers

I would also add restricting the engine size/power output of the vehicles they can drive.

However, I disagree with the ABI's suggestion that there should be a lower drink drive limit for young/novice drivers, as this gives the impression that it is fine for someone who is older or more experienced to have a drink and drive.  I think the limit should be reduced for everyone in line with most of the rest of Europe, but that's a different topic.

No, the current test is not enough

That's the simple answer anyway, as any change is not going to be popular with those young people it affects.  But we're not talking about a popularity contest, we're talking about people's lives, and the number of young people getting killed or injured on Britain's roads is unacceptable and something needs to be done about it.

Good Egg Safety App Goes Nationwide

This week saw the launch of the UK (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) version of the Good Egg Safety Smartphone App, which has already proved successful in Scotland.  The app provides parents with up to date news, information and expert advice at the touch of a button and aims to ensure they remain well informed about how to choose and use the correct car seat for their child(ren).

I recently reviewed the Scottish version of the app, which had a few  teething problems, but I'm pleased to say the people at Dynamic have done a great job ironing out the early creases to provide parents with a great, easy-to-use tool.

What's different with the UK version?

The UK version of the app is separate from the Scottish version and each only provides information based on their respective geographical area, so if you want to find out about Scottish events and news you need to download the Scottish app (and if you live near the border you might want both!).

Other than the geographic data, the information is pretty much the same. Parents are able to input their child's age and weight to be suggested with the most appropriate seat group for their child.  There are also some facts and real life stories to highlight the importance of using the right child car seat for your car and child.  By far the most valuable tools provided by the app are the Seat Checking Events and Good Egg Safety Retailers search functions.  All Good Egg supported seat checking events and approved retailers are entered on the in-built map, allowing parents to find ones convenient for them.  Events can even be put straight into the phone's calendar at the press of a button.

Will there be seat checking events happening in my area?

Being early days there are only a handful of Local Authorities across the UK who have signed up and are offering events.  This is expected to increase over the coming months, so download the app and keep an eye out for events or retailers being added near you!  If there aren't any listed near you its always worth contacting your local road safety team to see if they have anything in the pipeline.

What makes a Good Egg Approved Retailer?

To become a Good Egg Safety retailer named members of staff are assessed by mystery shoppers to ensure they are offering expert advice to parents.  The approval is given to the staff member, not the store, so if the member of staff moves on so does the approval.  In my opinion, this is absolutely key to the scheme.  It allows parents to buy with confidence that they are getting expert advice, not advice based just on making a sale!  It will take time for retailers to be approved to the Good Egg Safety standards, so don't expect a whole load of stores to pop up on the app overnight - you have to appreciate there will be a lot of work going on in the background, not only to approve retailers, but to maintain a program to ensure standards remain high.

Car seat: £200... Expert advice: Priceless!

As a parent of young children and a road safety professional I'm really excited, as I know first hand what a minefield it can be trying to find the right car seat for your child(ren).  You may have a budget under £50 or a few hundred to spend, but whatever you can afford you want to know that you are getting the safest seat possible for your precious offspring.  Expert advice is essential, and the Good Egg Safety campaign is working tirelessly to ensure access to that expert advice for every parent.  In addition to the app they have an online 'Ask the Expert' service, which is answered directly by top professionals in the field.  My one piece of advice would definitely be:  if you have a question please ask it - when it comes to your kids it really is better to be safe than sorry!!

Child Car Seats - Good Egg Safety App

Following a call on twitter for all Mummy and Daddy bloggers to review the new smartphone app from Good Egg Safety, here are my thoughts.  My comments here reflect my experience using the app on an iPhone 3GS.

My wife and I recently bought a new car seat for our 15 month old daughter, which I wrote about a couple of weeks ago, so it would be interesting to compare the advice and information we received to that contained in the Good Egg app.

The app contains six options on the main menu, I'll tackle each of these in turn:

1. Information

This section contains a few hard facts about the dangers of children not being properly restrained and also some real-life examples of when things have gone wrong.  The information is straightforward and easy to read, my only gripe would be that the real-life examples opened up in Safari rather than staying 'in-app', which meant having to exit to the home screen and reload the app to continue after each one.

2. Seat/Stage Selector

This is an excellent idea, where parents can enter their child's age and weight and the app tells them what stage seat to go for.  There is also a second page with information showing what weight/age each seat group is suitable for.

Now, I tested this inputting the following for both my children:

Child A - Age 15-24 months, weight 11-13 kg
Recommendation = Group 2 & 3

Child B - Age 2-4 years, weight 14-18 kg
Recommendation = Group 1

Now, I know quite a bit about car seats, but I don't think it needs that much to work out the problem with the recommendations I was given?  My 16 month old was recommended to be sat in a high-back booster seat using the adult seatbelt, while my 3 year old was recommended to be in a seat with a 5-point harness!  Now the recommendation for my 3 year old is correct, but there is no way my 16 month old should be out of a 5-point harness!!

I'm assuming this is a programming error that can be easily fixed, but nonetheless it is a significant oversight as some people will certainly take the word of such a respected organisation as gospel and, as all parents will know, the ill-informed playground talk that could follow might take a heck of a lot of undoing!

I also have another gripe with this section, and that is the fact that extended rear-facing (ERF) is offered as more of an afterthought than the primary option, considering significant safety benefit that it is (5x safer).  In my opinion, an organisation like Good Egg should be one of those championing rear-facing, and this app strikes me as an opportunity missed to say: "The safest option for your child is to use a rear-facing seat, however there are also forward-facing options..."

3. Seat Checking Events

This section shows where and when seat checking events are taking place, either on a map or on a calendar. There are a couple of bugs in the system here I believe - like Tyndrum being marked as on the Equator in the Gulf of Guinea?  This is a really good tool and I hope more people provide Good Egg with information about checks all over the UK, not just Scotland.

4. Good Egg Safety Retailers

I guessed this section would give a list of the retailers registered with the Good Egg scheme and show them on a map.  I could only get the map and not a list - I don't know if that is intentional or not?  Again, I think this is very useful for parents and hope that more retailers across the UK can be added - I was surprised the In Car Safety Centre at Milton Keynes wasn't on there?  Maybe there is also scope to identify retailers of ERF seats?

5. Good Egg Safety News

The news feed here is a useful tool to quickly scan through the latest news from Good Egg Safety.  No more comment needed on that one really, other than I'll wait and see if the newsletter comes through after signing up using the bar at the top :)

6. Links

Some good useful links in this section, again I'm going to bring up the lack of rear-facing information but I think you get that now ;)

Overall Opinion

I think the people at Good Egg Safety have come up with a very good idea to help parents keep their children safe in and around the car.  However, I am a bit disappointed with the execution and hope the problems can be ironed out for a new version.

Post-Script:

Since writing this I have been speaking to the lovely people at Dynamic regarding the Good Egg app and I'm pleased to report that most of my concerns have already been, or are being, addressed.

The issue regarding the seat selector had already been identified and fixed, I had obviously downloaded the app before the update had been uploaded.  I've since downloaded the updated version and can confirm it works fine.

They are also looking into how to make viewing the PDFs and returning to the app smoother and will be launching the project for England and Wales soon, so more information on checking events and retailers south of the border will become available as it is added.

It's really great to see Dynamic are so passionate about child safety, and their website is well worth a look for more information on their projects.

Bradley Wiggins and Compulsory Cycle Helmet Wearing

I thought I would quickly share my thoughts on this issue, following today's news stories, as it is one that I have healthily (and unhealthily) debated over the course of my Road Safety career so far. 

Looking at this purely from a Road Safety perspective I would suggest compuslory helmet wearing as a very good idea, in the same way seatbelt and motorcycle helmets laws were.  However, looking at the overall picture from a health and wellbeing perspective it is less clear cut, both financially and in terms of personal health/safety.

Thankfully, the chances of being involved in a serious accident are pretty rare, while the chances of developing serious health issues as a result of inactivity are more common, and they also cost the NHS a huge amount of money.  Promotion of cycling as an easy way to get more active, reduce congestion and reduce CO2 emissions is a high priority nationally and a lot of people would see compulsory helmet wearing as a barrier to this.

There are also many other ways cyclists can prevent themselves from becoming involved in accidents in the first place, e.g. training, using lights, good positioning and making sure they are visible, but so often people only focus on wearing a helmet or not.

Most of the hostility to helmet wearing stems purely from the viewpoint of 'I just don't want to wear one!' so I think it is very good that Bradley Wiggins, as a very influential figure, has promoted wearing a helmet, not listening to music and using lights whilst cycling as I'm sure it will help influence others, particularly children, to do so of their own free will.

Maybe he should bring out his own brand of helmets, if they become as popular as the sideburns we'd be on to a winner!

Which car seat: forward or rear facing?

Britax Maxway Car Seat

This week saw the time come for us to buy our 15 month old daughter her next car seat.  As a road safety professional, it is a decision that I, along with my wife, have put a considerable amount of time into making.  There are so many things to consider when buying a seat:  will our daughter fit in it well; will it fit in both our cars; is it easy enough to fit between the two cars; and, most importantly will it keep our precious daughter safe?

As part of our deliberations, one question came quickly to the forefront:  do we go for a forward or rear facing seat?  Here's my thoughts on the matter and why we went for the rear facing Britax Maxway.

What is Extended Rear Facing (ERF)?

Extended rear facing (ERF) is the term used for keeping a child in a rear facing car seat beyond the infant carrier (Group 0+) seat.  Group 0+ seats will mostly fit a child up to 13kg in weight, with Group 1 seats beginning to cater for children 9kg and above.  Now, I'm talking in weight rather than age here because that is how car seats are designed, and children of the same age will all be different weights.  Some people find this quite confusing so to give a rough estimate, a child will generally reach 9kg in weight between the age of 9-12 months and 13 kg at around 12-15 months.

ERF seats will cater for children from 9kg up to 18kg, approximately 4 years of age (Group 1), or up to 25kg, approximately 6 years of age (Group 1/2), depending on the seat.  This is instead of them going into a traditional forward facing seat with a harness.

What are the differences in terms of safety?

Frontal impacts are the most common type of crashes seen on the roads.  Anyone who has experienced even a minor crash will be able to tell you that, even wearing a seatbelt, you are thrown forwards considerably and this puts immense strain on your back and neck, often resulting in whiplash injuries or similar.  Now, as adults, our bone and muscle structure is fully formed and able to withstand much greater stresses than that of a child.  This video demonstrates this and explains how keeping a child rear facing reduces the risk of serious injury/death by more than 90%.

Why isn't it the law to keep children rear facing then?

In some countries, including Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark, it is already recommended that children are kept rear facing, and there are moves in the United States to follow suit, at least for children up to 2 years of age.  In the UK this is not the case, and there is no reason for it not to be, as the biggest factor is that most people are completely unaware of the issue.

What are the barriers to rear facing in the UK?

I have picked out 3 barriers here, there are probably more for some people but these are certainly the ones I found we had to overcome in our decision to buy rear facing for our daughter.

Awareness

As I've briefly touched on, awareness of ERF is a huge issue in the UK and, in my opinion, this is for two reasons:  1) there is simply not enough information disseminated to parents about the subject, which needs addressing at a national level; and 2) parents' reliance on their peers for information rather than professionals, and the unavoidable comparison with others' children.  I think this video, which I found courtesy of Osocio, sums this up to perfection.

Now, I have to say I fell foul of this awareness issue with our son, who is now nearly 4.  Even being a road safety professional, all be it only for a short time at that point, I had heard very little about ERF when it came to buying his Group 1 seat.  It was something we briefly discussed, but dismissed as we just didn't know enough about it.  There was also the issue that, at that time, there were very few ERF seats available in the UK, which brings me nicely on to the next barrier.

Availability

It seems absolutely crazy to me that one of the biggest suppliers of ERF car seats, Britax, is actually a British company!   For years they were making seats and exporting them to Scandanavia because British parents weren't interested, and those who were had to buy them from Scandanavian retailers!  Thankfully, this situation has much improved over the last couple of years and there are now approximately 15 ERF seats available to purchase in the UK from a number of manufacturers.  But, and this is quite a big but, there are not many places that stock them and can offer you advice on fitting.  I am very lucky that, living in East Anglia, I have the In Car Safety Centre at Milton Keynes, and advice clinics run by Road Safety Officers in Essex and Suffolk but we still ended up travelling over 400 miles in total going back and forward.  I'm well aware that other areas of the country are not as well served and would encourage anyone reading this who knows of other places to promote them as widely as possible.

Also important to note here that, as with all seats, not all models will fit all cars/children, so it important to try them out and see what works best for you.  We found we had a choice of three that fitted our two cars well, and plumped for the Maxway as our best option overall.

Cost

With the cheapest one we found starting just over £200, and prices rising to over £400 depending on the model you like best, going rear facing is certainly not the cheap option, so if funds are limited you're going to have to consider this one real hard!  My personal view is that there is no price anyone could put on my child's safety so it was well worth the money we paid for the Maxway.  

What needs to be done?

Well, the most important thing I want people to take away from this is that extended rear facing (ERF) is the way forward to reduce the number of young children killed or injured in car accidents on the UK's roads.  If you know people with young children, tell them about it before they buy their child's Group 1 seat (from around 9 months onwards), and support those who are already campaigning for change at a national level here in the UK.  I've included some links below to those who I have had contact with, but I'm sure there are plenty more.

I hope you found this useful/informative, and please share it if you did.

Useful links:
The Good Egg Guide to in-car Child Safety
Rear Facing: The Way Forward
The In Car Safety Centre
Safer Kids Rear Face UK
V & C Consultants

Road Casualty Increases in 2011: Is the Government to Blame?

In light of the recent Transport Select Committee report, it appears people have been pointing the finger at the government, and in particular the budget cuts, as a major factor in the rise in road casualties seen in 2011. In short, I don't think the coalition government can take any blame or credit for any changes in road casualties...at least not yet anyway! This is why:

Road casualties since 2007

I've not been in the field of road safety a particularly long time, about four and a half years in fact, but when I first started going into schools to talk to pupils about road safety, the number of people killed each year on the road was around 3,000 (2,946 in 2007 to be exact!). I remember this because one of our slides compared the number of people who died in road accidents in 2007 to the number who lost their lives in the Twin Towers following the tragic events of 9/11.

In the four and a half years since, we have seen that figure fall by over 1,000, even taking into account the slight rise from 1,850 in 2010 to 1,901 in 2011. That is an incredible achievement, and something anyone involved in road safety should be proud of, but it still means nearly 2000 people are losing their lives on the UK's roads every year, not to mention the 20,000+ other people who suffer serious injuries. But is this the full picture?

Should we just look at deaths on the road?

I mentioned seriously injured casualties in the previous paragraph because the answer is: no, we shouldn't! The difference between life and death in a road accident can come down to fractions of seconds or millimetres. In terms of casualty reduction, we want to see a fall in the number of all serious road accidents, and the less serious ones too! Considering the road death figures quoted above, we see a 35% reduction between 2007 and 2011. Including serious injuries in the figures we see a much shallower reduction of 19% between 2007 and 2011. However, I must point out that the classification of a serious injury is very broad, ranging from death more than 30 days after the accident to a minor fracture requiring hospital treatment, but that's a topic for another discussion.

It is also important to state that the figures for 2011 could also prove to be an anomaly, and the downward trend could resume in 2012 and 2013 - only time will tell.

What factors can influence a reduction/increase in road casualties?

There are a multitude of factors that can influence the number of road casualties, these include improvements in vehicle technology, the weather, the price of fuel, the economy, levels of police enforcement, changes in legislation, information and marketing campaigns, training and education interventions...the list goes on. My point is, it is almost impossible to pinpoint one specific factor on a national scale to explain why casualties have decreased significantly since 2003, but increased slightly in 2011. It is in this respect that I don't think we can pin the blame on the government, however what the Transport Select Committee have correctly highlighted is that the government may have taken their eye off the ball when it comes to road safety policy and the rise in 2011 could be the start of a worrying new trend that the government could influence through their policy decisions.

Up until 2010 the government had set targets for casualty reduction at a national level. In the new Strategic Framework for Road Safety, belatedly introduced in May 2011, national targets were removed, with emphasis placed on targets and priorities being set at a local level. This has come at the same time as local councils have had to make unprecedented budget cuts in line with reduced funding from central government. A recent report by the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) has highlighted that cuts to road safety budgets have been considerably higher than those to other council services.

I agree that there is likely to be a long term negative effect from this disinvestment in road safety and also agree with calls from the Transport Select Committee and road safety stakeholders nationally for the government to reinstate national targets for road safety and to give much stronger leadership on this matter.

While I stated at the beginning of this post that blame shouldn't be placed on the government for the rise in casualties in 2011, if they continue to take their current course of action (or inaction) ministers need to be prepared to shoulder at least some of the responsibility for their disinvestment. Therefore I would urge them to take heed of the recommendations of the Transport Select Committee, and other road safety stakeholders, and use the review of the strategy this September as an opportunity to take back the reins and show they are serious about road safety.