Greater than 1,300 UK lives could possibly be saved annually if proven road safety interventions were introduced, in accordance with recent research.
Researchers from around the globe analysed the impact of targeting the “4 key risk aspects” of speeding, drink-driving, lack of helmet and seatbelt use in 185 countries.
The study, published as a Series in The Lancet, found as much as half one million lives could possibly be saved through measures equivalent to infrastructure changes, more enforcement of drink-driving regulations, and the passing and enforcement of bike helmet and seatbelt rules.
Most road traffic deaths are preventable
Professor Adnan Hyder
Within the UK, the potential variety of lives saved annually for the 4 areas was 815 for speeding, 373 for seatbelt use, 125 for helmet use and 71 for drink-driving.
Series co-author Dr Andres Vecino-Ortiz, from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, USA, said: “We hope that these recent estimates provide tangible impetus for the worldwide road safety community to give attention to implementing evidence-based interventions, especially in low and middle-income countries.
“These estimates will be utilized by policymakers to perform their very own priority setting analyses to scale back road fatalities.”
Provisional Department for Transport figures show there have been 1,560 fatalities on Britain’s roads last yr.
Series co-ordinator Professor Adnan Hyder, from The George Washington University within the US, said: “Most road traffic deaths are preventable, but sadly the variety of fatalities continues to rise in low-income countries while progress in high-income countries has slowed over the past decade.”
