Better roads save lives - report

29 January 2002: It is always dangerous to read too much into statistics but new figures strongly endorse claims that better roads save lives.

The figures are based on the link between the number of deaths on different types of roads in Britain last year.

The key findings however, have universal applicability.

And they show that fewer than six percent of their road deaths occurred on motorways.

This suggests that segregated traffic is safer than single lane opposite direction routes.

It only stands to reason: the risk is likely to be higher if you have traffic going in opposite directions in a more confined space.

In 2000, 189 people died in motorway accidents, figures from Reader's Digest show.

A total of 1,986 died on A-roads, with 1,234 being killed on B or minor roads.

In its latest issue, Reader's Digest collaborated with the RAC Foundation to determine common ways that ``good'' drivers - those not at fault in an accident - were killed.

The risk of death on two-way roads - such as the vast majority of those in Ireland - is far higher, the figures show.

* Head-on collisions killed 35% of 'good' drivers;

* 8% died in rear-end shunts (a possibility on motorways too of course);

*12% were killed by other drivers going through red lights.

The figures also showed that more those killed on the roads died in good weather and during daylight hours.

Of fatal and serious-collision accidents, a quarter occurred when drivers were steering straight, while 10% were caused by poor overtaking and 20% by losing control.

January 2002