Road
Safety
Speed Ki
Road Casualties in 2012 Killed 1,754 Seriously Injured 23,039 Slightly Injured 170,930 All 195,723
Speeding is all to easy. But cars that speed can cause fatalities. Britain has one of the best saftey records throughout europe. Despite massive increases in traffic over the last few decades, the number of people killed on our roads has fallen from around 5,500 per year in the mid 1980s to well under 1,754 in 2012. However, this still means that five people die on Britain’s roads every day. 1
ding ills
2
Road Ca
in
201
Fatality 3
23,039
1,754
Number
Serious Injury
Minor In
asualties
n
njury
195,723
170,930
12 Speeding Around 400 people a year are killed in crashes in which someone exceeds the speed limit or drives too fast for the conditions. Drink Driving Around 280 people die a year in crashes in which someone was over the legal drink drive limit. Seat Belt Wearing Around 200 lives each year could be saved if everyone always wore their seat belt. Careless Driving More than 300 deaths a year involve someone being “careless, reckless or in a hurry”, and a further 120 involve “aggressive driving”. At-work Around one third of fatal and serious road crashes involve someone who was at work.
All
Inexperience More than 400 people are killed in crashes involving young car drivers aged 17 to 24 years, every year, including over 150 young drivers, 90 passengers and more than 170 other road users.
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Pedestria
5
ans
It is very important as a pedestrian not to cross the road at any points were you put yourself at danger from on coming traffic. One example of this is roundabouts. Many young people like to take the short cut and walk across the roundabout to get across the road. This is extremely dangerous and can cause injury if a fast moving vehicle strikes them. Being involved in a road accident can be a very traumatic time, particularly if you were injured; however, the experience can be even worse if the person responsible for the accident leaves the scene without providing their details. So make sure that you aren’t at any risk of becoming a victim to a road traffic accident. A danger on the roads can appear at any time, so make sure you keep concentrated on your surroundings and don’t get distracted by your music device or mobile phone.
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When driving at night things can blur, they can sizzle and distort into something you didn’t think you would ever see. Instead you stand there looking straight at your last moment. At that moment you aren’t even aware that you don’t have another moment to waste. You think back to all the other moments you have wasted throughout your life and decide to cherish this one, because you finally realise its your last. Sometimes mistakes can be all it takes to cause an accident that could prove to be unforgivable. 77
Most of the time small things can be done to prevent accidents from happening on the roads. Things like seatbelts or speed limits are put into action to ensure your safety. However everyday nearly 100,000 road uses in the UK doesn’t wear their seatbelt. This only results in around 200 fatalities throughout a whole year, but all of these deaths and injuries could have been prevented if the right precautions had been taken. Be safe and wear your seatbelt, it could save you’re life.
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Think
Drive
Stay
Alive
By
Laurence Calvert