Fewer UK motorists die on the roads

Today there has been some positive news: our roads have become safer and fewer people are dying following collisions. A study carried out by the University of Nottingham looked at associations between socio-economic status and gender from 1960 to 2009. The researchers found that deaths had fallen from 1,647 motoring deaths in 1960 to 964 motoring deaths in 2009.

Children are much safer than they were in the 1960s, with only 20 children under the age of 14 dying on the road in 2009 compared to 66 in 1960; however, there has been a small increase in the number of elderly drivers killed on the roads. This is likely to be due to there being a greater number of older drivers today than there were in 1960.

Drugs and alcohol a problem

Dr Guohua Li from the Center for Injury Epidemiology and Prevention at the Columbia University Medical Center in New York discussed the research. He reported that similar patterns have been seen in America; however, he is most concerned about the rising number of incidents related to the abuse of prescription drugs. He said: “Even by looking at the rates in the two countries you can say there is a lot of room for improvement.”

Prescription drugs often impair a person’s ability to drive safely. Many prescriptions cause lethargy and tiredness, which becomes especially problematic at night. Drinking and driving also continues to be a major problem.

While there has been excellent progress in the last few decades in educating people to drive more safely, many people are still putting themselves and others at risk by taking drugs and drinking before driving.