Newslink December

News
PACTS report highlight risks caused by LCVs
A major report from the Parliamentary
Advisory Council for Transport Safety
(PACTS) has challenged the orthodoxy of
traditional road casualty analysis by
asking ‘what kills whom’ rather than
stressing the most vulnerable road user
groups.
The result is a surprising statistic that,
contrary to popular opinion, cars do not
pose the greatest danger to other road
users: light vans do, followed by HGVs.
While more car occupants die, a
comparison based on number of vehicles
and miles travelled highlights the
propensity of LCVs to be involved in road
traffic fatalities and suggests that more
work needs to be done to improve safety
of these vehicles. That this conclusion
comes at a time of huge growth in LCV
traffic to accommodate the rise in
demand for home deliveries, makes it all
the more pressing that action is taken.
It is particularly interesting when you
consider that the vast majority of the new
breed of drivers getting behind the wheel
of an LCV are armed only with a car
licence and driving experience; perhaps
the time has come for a fresh look at the
licensing rules around smaller vans which
are popular with home courier firms.
This sort of analysis, which places an
emphasis on danger rather than
vulnerability, puts PACTS’ findings more
in keeping with ‘Vision Zero’ and road
danger reduction strategies, such as those
being followed by Transport for London.
The report calls for a new transport
agenda to be created that puts safety at
its heart, rather than considering cost,
congestion reduction or convenience. It
also says that while the Government
wishes to promote healthy, sustainable
active travel, such as walking and cycling,
such initiatives will struggle unless the
public feels safe doing so.
As the Minister for Road Safety
commented last year, while road traffic
casualty statistics highlight how much
work has been done to improve road
safety, it does not necessarily always feel
safe out on the road.
The graphs below offer a snapshot of
the overall analysis and make
enlightening
reading; to read
the full report,
click the panel.
To get the
full story,
click here
‘‘
By analysing the dangers created
by other road users, we get closer
to the philosophy behind the
‘Vision Zero’ strategy, which aims
to eliminate all road deaths
‘‘
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NEWSLINK n DECEMBER 2020