Road Safety Resources

At IAM RoadSmart, we aim to inform members of the motoring community, fleet managers and external organisations about the importance of road safety.  We do this by producing different resources that inform and educate on the latest policy changes.

We also offer tips, advice, and general guidance to support making the roads a safer place. On this page, you will find a variety of resources explaining different areas of road safety. This includes The Highway Code, alongside tips to help you improve your driving and riding.

1. Road Safety Statistics

Road traffic trends have been affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Traffic in 2021 was 12.1% lower when compared to 2019 pre-pandemic levels. However, it saw an 11.9% increase from 2020’s levels, with 297.6 billion vehicle miles (BVM) driven on UK roads.

The roads are getting busier again, and more incidents are happening each year, so keeping our roads safe is more important than ever. But, just how much have our roads changed in the past year? Check out our summary of road safety statistics below:

 

 

Overall statistics

2021 saw 128,209 casualties on UK roads, including 23,363 serious injuries and 1,558 deaths. These statistics equate to someone being killed or seriously injured every 21 minutes during 2021. This is an increase of 15.6% from 2020, but an 8.1% reduction from 2019 prior to COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.

Overall statistics

Killed KSI KSIA All
1,558 24,921 27,450 128,209

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/55b6ff07-8432-40b4-be6f-7e1420fdbf13

Overall Stats

 

Vehicle miles driven

297.6 billion vehicle miles (BVM) were driven in 2021. Cars/taxis took the top spot with a staggering 221.4 BVM, followed by LCV’s with 75.4% less vehicle miles at 54.4 BVM.

These two vehicle types accounted for 91.4% of vehicle miles driven in 2021.

Vehicle miles driven (BVM)

Cars/Taxi LCV HGV Pedal Buses/Coach Motorcycles
221.4 54.4 17.5 4.2 1.8 2.5

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/summary

Vehicle Miles (1)

 

Casualties by gender

Out of the 1558 road deaths in 2021, 1,211 (77.7%) of those killed on UK roads were male. 61.9% of all 128,209 casualties were also male. Male road deaths have increased by 7.4% since 2020, but are 7.1% lower compared to 2019 pre-pandemic levels. Comparatively, female road deaths have increased by 4.5% since 2020, but are 22.5% lower than 2019 pre-pandemic levels.

Casualties by gender

 Killed KSI KSIA All
Male 1,211 17,498 8,181 47,807
Female 347 7,391 19,234 79,393
Unknown  32 35 1,009

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/summary

Gender

 

Casualties by age

30-39-year-olds contributed 24,920 casualties in 2021, the most of any age group. However, 70+ contributed the most road deaths (291) followed by 30-39-year-olds (248) and 50-59-year-olds close behind in third (239). These three groups combined accounted for 49.9% of the total UK road deaths.

Casualties by age

 <16 16 17-20 21-24 25-29 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70+
Killed 36 10 145 108 152 248 179 239 150 291
KSI 2,030 311 2,436 2,168 2,522 4,217 3,107 3,449 2,068 2,409
KSIA 2,273 347 2,703 2,388 2,757 4,618 3,414 3,794 2,285 2,659
All 10,924 1,374 11,597 11,971 14,521 24,920 17,829 15,696 8,565 8,054

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/8e2cfc41-4f68-4459-85b9-f3ed6c9eb758

Ages

 

Casualties by road type

Of the estimated 247,800 miles of road in the UK, A-roads accounted for 54% of all road deaths (837) in 2021, whilst only covering 11.9% of the UK road network. However, going by deaths per mile of road, motorways are the most dangerous, with one death for every 22.3 miles of motorway, compared to one every 35.2 miles on A roads. This is significantly more than C roads (classified unnumbered) and unclassified roads, with a road death every 498.9 miles on these roads.

Casualties by road type

 A B C U Motorway A(M)
Killed 837 223 44 351 92 11
KSI 11,142 3,400 909 8,656 737 77
KSIA 12,192 3,754 1,064 9,560 800 83
All 58,290 16,133 5,329 43,156 4,857 444

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/f1b9a6ac-8584-4259-a785-e95555a0b222

Road Type

 

Casualties by speed limit

Most deaths occurred on roads with 60 and 30 mph speed limits – 514 and 501 respectively – accounting for 65% of fatalities. 20mph zones only accounted for 53 deaths, followed by 50mph roads, with 115 fatalities. 30mph saw 67,715 total casualties: 291% more than the next worst at 17,311 casualties on 60mph roads –statistically the worst for road deaths.

Casualties by speed limit

 1-20 mph21-30 mph31-40 mph41-50 mph51-60 mph61-70 mphMotorway
Killed 53501157115514115103
KSI 2,58912,4812,2491,2264,710852814
KSIA 2,71313,7652,4961,3825,277939882
All 16,53167,71511,4925,82417,3114,0355,301

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/9db0257e-6563-4d7d-be2f-014092d3bc1b

Speed Limits

 

Casualties by month

The second half of 2021 saw a 61.4% increase in road deaths compared to the first. July and October were the worst months, each seeing 177 fatalities. Comparatively, February saw 66% fewer fatalities with only 60 road deaths, followed by March with 85.

Casualties by month

Killed KSI KSIA All
January 90 1,280 1,435 6,898
February 60 1,163 1,293 6,497
March 85 1,595 1,761 8,456
April 118 2,004 2,212 10,645
May 123 2,137 2,355 11,742
June 120 2,443 2,686 12,224
July 177 2,532 2,786 12,407
August 162 2,334 2,568 11,336
September 154 2,511 2,763 12,416
October 177 2,426 2,661 12,289
November 148 2,482 2,711 12,556
December 144 2,014 2,226 10,743

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/a278acc4-6174-43cb-8a80-b96530124722

Month

 

Casualties by time of day

You’re most likely to be killed or seriously injured between 3pm and 5pm. There were 32,472 casualties during this time slot. The largest amount of road deaths in 2021 happened from 4-5pm with 106 fatalities. Statistically, the safest time to travel is between 4 and 5am, accounting for only 203 people being killed or seriously injured and 760 casualties altogether.

Casualties by time of day

Hour Killed KSI KSIA All
0 55 500 549 2,066
1 43 390 420 1,419
2 28 241 267 1,007
3 30 249 269 854
4 32 203 221 760
5 35 301 331 1,181
6 35 506 558 2,243
7 48 911 1,000 4,683
8 49 1,148 1,287 7,264
9 52 907 1,011 5,388
10 49 988 1,098 5,455
11 71 1,206 1,343 6,790
12 89 1,466 1,625 7,925
13 74 1,437 1,587 7,950
14 95 1,665 1,833 8,553
15 90 1,907 2,120 10,524
16 106 2,002 2,219 10,856
17 89 2,049 2,256 11,092
18 100 1,729 1,890 8,843
19 81 1,386 1,518 7,076
20 79 1,185 1,289 5,319
21 100 997 1,082 4,256
22 77 870 943 3,800
23 51 678 737 2,904
Unknown 0 0 0 1

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/a7ed08ca-da98-44dd-a074-92b12935ad01

Hour

 

Seat belt fatalities

Of all car occupant fatalities, 34% of men and 20% of females were not wearing a seatbelt. 17-29-year-olds were the worst offenders with 40% of fatalities not wearing a seatbelt. Of all fatalities that occurred between 6pm and 8am, 47% of were not wearing a seatbelt.

Seat belt fatalities

Male Female
34% 20%

 

0-16 17-29 30-59 60+
22% 40% 30% 21%

 

Daytime (8am to 6pm) Night-time (6pm to 8am)
22% 47%

Source: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

Seatbelts

 

Fatalities by location

England saw a 6.7% increase in deaths on the road in 2021. 1329 people were killed and there were over 110,000 total casualties (11% increase). Scotland had the same number of deaths as in 2020 (143) and only a 2% increase in the overall casualties. Wales had the biggest increase with 21.1% more deaths on the road and an 18% increase in casualties.

Looking at England, the Southeast had the most road deaths with 235, followed by the Northwest with 190. However, London saw the greatest number of overall casualties with 26,698. The Northeast had the lowest number of fatalities with 51, and 3921 total casualties; 85% less than London. View the full breakdown by region below:

Fatalities by location

 Killed KSI KSIA All
England 1,329 22,145 24,327 118,740
Scotland 86 1,760 1,760 5,106
Wales 143 1,016 1,363 4,363

 

 Killed KSI KSIA All
East Midlands 153 1,838 2,518 9,469
East of England 164 2,551 2,551 12,445
London 75 3,580 3,581 26,698
Northeast 51 876 935 3,921
Northwest 190 2,814 3,153 12,952
Southeast 235 4,017 4,584 19,847
Southwest 168 1,921 2,291 11,019
West Midlands 133 1,902 1,903 10,593
Yorkshire and the Humber 160 2,646 2,813 11,796

Source: https://roadtraffic.dft.gov.uk/custom-downloads/road-accidents/reports/df96599f-dee8-40b8-be7d-24e6c72272ae

GB

 

2. Downloadable Posters

Encouraging road safety is at the heart of everything we do at IAM RoadSmart.

That’s why we have created a series of posters to raise awareness of common road safety encounters you might have on the roads. These posters are designed for anybody who wants to learn more about road safety, or if you manage a team who are always out on the roads, these make a perfect resource to help them remain as safe as they can be. Click below to download.

The Hierarchy of Road Users

 

Pedestrian Priority

 

Cyclists and Roundabouts

 

The 'Dutch Reach'

 

Sharing with Cyclists

Sitting Comfortably

Driving in Towns

Motorway Driving

 

3. Video Tips and Guidance

One way of limiting your risk of an on-road incident is understanding how to proactively handle different situations. Even the smallest of tweaks to your driving or riding can help you to keep yourself and others as safe as possible. The videos below showcase a whole variety of different situations you may encounter on the roads, alongside some top tips to help you improve.

Check them out and if you feel they would be beneficial to someone you know, why not forward them on? 

Understanding the Hierarchy of Road Users

 

Observation, Anticipation and Planning

 

How To Effectively Manage Distractions

 

Breaking the Cycle of Conflict

 

Understanding Stopping Distance

 

 

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