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Pedestrians, cyclists and other vulnerable road users
account for three fifths of all killed or seriously injured
incidents
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Department for Transport reviewing new casualty
reporting system
The latest provisional statistics for road casualties* released
today (2 February 2017) show that while there have been fewer
overall casualties, there has been an increase in incidents
recorded as ‘killed or seriously injured’ for all road user
categories when compared to the same period last year.
Vulnerable road users make up three fifths (57.8%) of all those
killed or seriously injured. For the period October 2015 to
September 2016, a motorcyclist was 5% more likely to be killed or
seriously injured compared to the previous year. Cyclists and
pedestrians saw increases of 2% and 3% respectively. All child
casualties were up 8%.
For the same period, car users were 10% more likely to be
recorded as being involved in a ‘killed or seriously injured’
incident.
However, the report carries a note of caution as police forces
are changing the way that incidents are recorded. Using a system
called CRASH (Collision Recording and Sharing system), the police
officer records the types of injuries suffered by the casualty
which automatically sets the severity type of either ‘slight’ or
‘serious’. Under other systems, to record severity directly,
officers need to know which injury type falls into each of the
two categories.
Forces using CRASH have seen that incidents rated as ‘serious’
are between 10% and 15% higher when compared against forces not
using CRASH. The Department for Transport is investigating why
there is such a difference between those using CRASH and those
who aren’t, but officer error has been ruled out.
Commenting on the statistics, Edmund King, AA president said
“These figures need treating with some caution as there have been
some changes in police reporting.
“However, the one worrying fact that shines through is that
vulnerable road users consistently account for three fifths of
all killed or seriously injured incidents.
“In the month where we are celebrating 20 years of Euro NCAP***
and the improved safety of car occupants, no real advancements
have been made to improve the protection of motorcyclists,
cyclists and pedestrians.”
