A road deaths investigation unit should be created to restore Britain’s recently lost reputation for having the safest roads in Europe, according to a study published today.

Road travel is the only mode of transport for which there is no specialist national team of crash investigators. The Department for Transport has air, rail and marine accidents investigation branches which report on every fatal incident and make recommendations. But road accidents are left to police to investigate and they are primarily concerned with identifying the culprit rather than drawing lessons for improving road safety.

The study by the Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (Pacts) recommended that the unit should be established by the Health & Safety Executive and should initially investigate the 1,000 deaths a year among people who are driving or riding in the course of their work. The unit could recommend prosecution of companies that failed to ensure the safety of employees, such as by encouraging them to drive when tired.

The unit could also make broader recommendations about vehicle safety and traffic law enforcement.

The study found that road deaths had fallen only slightly in recent years.

In 2000 Britain had 60 road deaths per million people compared with 68 in the Netherlands and 67 in Sweden. Britain showed no improvement over the next four years, and by 2006 road deaths were only slightly lower at 56 per million. By contrast, the Netherlands and Sweden last year achieved 43 and 49 respectively.

Both countries have redesigned a high proportion of roads to make them safer for pedestrians and cyclists.

The Department for Transport has resisted setting a road death target, arguing that a combined target for deaths and serious injuries is as effective. However, a study last year found that changes in the way serious injuries were recorded may have given the false impression that the Government was making progress on road safety.

But Rob Gifford, director of Pacts, said: “A road death is much less equivocal than an injury. A specific target for deaths would concentrate minds.”

The Pacts study proposes a target of 1,000 deaths a year by 2030, a fall of more than two thirds from last year’s total of 3,172. The proposal is based on the idea that using the road network should be no more than twice as dangerous as everyday activities such as DIY. At present road travel is 8.5 times as dangerous.Pacts recommends a default 20mph speed limit in built-up areas and greater use of cameras.

October 14, 2007