Government launches new road safety strategy

TODAY (7 January) the UK Government launched a new road safety strategy which proposes wide-ranging changes to existing laws and regulations. It covers all vehicle users and vehicle safety systems.

The overreaching targets are a 65% reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on roads in Great Britain by 2035 and a 70% reduction in the number of children (under 16) killed or seriously injured on roads in Great Britain by 2035.

The overall themes of the policy reviews are:

supporting road users
taking advantage of technology, innovation and data for safer vehicles and post-collision care
ensuring infrastructure is safe
robust enforcement to protect all road users

Alongside the strategy, five consultations were launched under these headings:

Motoring offences

Proposals for change include lowering the drink drive limit, tougher penalties for not wearing a seatbelt and use of illegal number plates. Lilian Greenwood MP, Minister for Local Transport, says in her foreword that the base of much of the legislation on road safety is the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988 and that there has been no comprehensive review of those laws until now.

Introducing a minimum learning period for learner drivers (category B driving licence)

Looking at a minimum time period between passing a theory test and taking a practical driving test.

Introducing mandatory eyesight testing for older drivers

Moving away from the current self-declaration system for eyesight standards for drivers aged 70 and over and introducing mandatory eyesight tests.

Improving moped and motorcycle training, testing and licensing

Mandating vehicle safety technologies in GB type approval

This follows the 2019 EU amendments to its existing General Safety Regulation (which became known as GSR2), mandating additional safety features for new vehicles, and lists 18 technologies which could be subject to mandatory fitting (many of which are already fitted to cars sold in the UK). The list includes Event Data Recorder (EDR) technology that records crash data to support crash reconstruction and research.

Toby Poston, BVRLA Chief Executive, said: “After a road transport policy decade that has been dominated by decarbonisation, it is great to see today’s long-overdue refocus on the vital issue of road safety. With millions of vehicles on the road travelling billions of miles every year, the fleet and mobility sector is a key stakeholder in this debate.

“From ADAS and vehicle data access to Earned Recognition and road safety investigations, the BVRLA is already working with policymakers across multiple workstreams to ensure that the sector’s views and potential contributions are understood. The added momentum and focus that this strategy and its ambitious targets will bring are very welcome.”

The strategy document and the five consultations can be viewed here