Tag: road safety

Green light for self-driving vehicles on Britain’s roads

Motorists could see self-driving vehicles on British roads for the first time later this year, the Department for Transport has announced today.

Following a landmark call for evidence, the government has set out how vehicles fitted with Automated Lane Keeping System (ALKS) technology could legally be defined as self-driving, as long as they receive GB type approval and that there is no evidence to challenge the vehicle’s ability to self-drive.

Designed for use on a motorway in slow traffic, ALKS enables a vehicle to drive itself in a single lane, while maintaining the ability to easily and safely return control to the driver when required.

The technology could improve road safety by reducing human error, which contributes to over 85% of accidents. The driver will be able to hand control over to the vehicle, which will constantly monitor speed and keep a safe distance from other cars.

Today’s announcement comes as a consultation on The Highway Code rules is launched to ensure the first wave of this technology is used safely and responsibly. This consultation will conclude on 28 May 2021.

Transport Minister Rachel Maclean said: “This is a major step for the safe use of self-driving vehicles in the UK, making future journeys greener, easier and more reliable while also helping the nation to build back better.

“But we must ensure that this exciting new tech is deployed safely, which is why we are consulting on what the rules to enable this should look like. In doing so, we can improve transport for all, securing the UK’s place as a global science superpower.”

The UK Government says self-driving technology in cars, buses and delivery vehicles could spark the beginning of the end of urban congestion, with traffic lights and vehicles speaking to each other to keep traffic flowing, reducing emissions and improving air quality in our towns and cities.

Not only are automated vehicles expected to improve road safety, the technology could also improve access to transport for people with mobility issues and lead to more reliable public transport services, helping to level-up access to transport in historically disconnected and rural areas.

As we ‘build back better’, connected and autonomous vehicle technology could create around 38,000 new jobs in a UK industry that could be worth £42 billion by 2035. Over 80% of these jobs are expected to be in professional, technical and skilled trade occupations.

Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) Chief Executive, Mike Hawes, said: “The automotive industry welcomes this vital step to permit the use of automated vehicles on UK roads, which will put Britain in the vanguard of road safety and automotive technology.

“Automated driving systems could prevent 47,000 serious accidents and save 3,900 lives over the next decade through their ability to reduce the single largest cause of road accidents – human error.

“Technologies such as Automated Lane Keeping Systems will pave the way for higher levels of automation in future – and these advances will unleash Britain’s potential to be a world leader in the development and use of these technologies, creating essential jobs while ensuring our roads remain among the safest on the planet.”

The UK is already a world leader in connected and self-driving vehicle innovation, and British companies are working on and developing the next generations of automated vehicles.

Drink-drive warning as beer gardens re-open in Scotland

-Insurance giant urges motorists to think twice before getting behind the wheel-

Clare Egan, Head of Motor Product at Admiral, said: “As beer gardens re-open across Scotland, we risk seeing a rise in the number of people tempted to get behind the wheel after a drink, putting other road users, pedestrians, and themselves in danger.

“It’s vital to understand the implications of taking this risk and we’d urge all motorists to think twice before getting in their car to drive after having an alcoholic drink.

“Being caught over the limit can see a driver face up to 6 months in prison, an unlimited fine and a driving ban of at least one year, not to mention the potential life-changing impact it can have if it leads to a crash.

“Those convicted of driving under the influence of alcohol could find their insurance premiums increasing by more than 250% – that’s if they can get insurance at all. But the financial penalties don’t stop there, if you do have an accident while drink-driving many insurers will refuse to cover the cost of damages, meaning drivers could be left with hefty sums to pay including the cost of third-party claims.

“There are many different factors that could impact your ability to drive safely. Weight, age and metabolism all play a part in alcohol tolerance, meaning it is virtually impossible to know if you are safe to drive. Even the smallest amount of alcohol will affect how you drive, so the only way to be really safe is to avoid drinking altogether when you know you are taking the car.

“As the UK slowly eases out of this lockdown, many people will be looking to enjoy the relaxing of some of these restrictions. Make sure you consider another way to get to and from the pub safely, and whatever you do, don’t be tempted to drive.”

60% of motorists consider self-driving cars a threat to road safety

A study from the UK’s largest independent road safety charity, IAM RoadSmart, has revealed that 60 per cent of motorists consider the growing ability of vehicles to drive themselves as a serious threat to road safety.

Female drivers (66 per cent) and drivers over the age of 70 (64 per cent) had even higher concerns.

This is despite well-documented evidence that most road incidents are actually caused by human error, suggesting that giving greater control to the vehicles themselves in the future might actually reduce the number of collisions.

However, while automated vehicle technology could have the power to improve road safety, this will only happen if the new systems are used correctly, including through driver training to understand their capabilities and limitations, believes the road safety charity.

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy & Research, said: “Autonomous and automated vehicle technology is becoming an integral part of everyday motoring and while it does have the capacity to improve road safety, its capabilities must be fully understood to ensure we don’t over rely on them.

“Over reliance on these systems, and a lack of training on how to use them, could have a negative effect, with potentially worrying results for motorists and pedestrians alike.

“As an ever-increasing number of vehicle systems take on the tasks that drivers used to perform, IAM RoadSmart is calling for an understanding of automated features to be included in the UK driving test.”

According to government projections, 40 per cent of UK new car sales could have self-driving capabilities in less than 15 years. Meanwhile, advocates for a push towards autonomous vehicle technology also highlight the financial benefits to the UK economy, possibly almost worth £42 billion by 2035 together with the creation of nearly 40,000 British jobs.

Concerns still remain however around the high cost of research and development, making autonomous vehicles too expensive for some, together with possible malfunctions, data security issues and moral dilemmas as to what the vehicle should be programmed to protect.

Neil added: “Our research clearly shows that many motorists remain to be convinced about the safety of self-driving vehicles.

“While we wait for completely autonomous cars to take over from human drivers driver training will be paramount in ensuring that increasingly automated vehicles are an asset rather than a drawback.”

New report urges the Government to bring in alcolocks without delay

An expert report issued today is urging the UK Government to implement an alcolock programme without delay to help reduce the number of drink drive related incidents.

Westminster’s Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS) report, which IAM RoadSmart contributed to, highlights that the greater use of alcolocks will have a positive impact on road safety.

The UK’s largest independent road safety charity welcomes this latest report and the use of alcolocks – which require the driver to blow into a breath-testing instrument that is connected to the vehicle ignition system to prevent it from starting if the driver is over the limit.  

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy and Research said: “Worldwide, integrating technology, such as alcolocks, with rehabilitation courses, has been shown to be the most effective way to stop drink drive reoffending and reduce crashes.

“Since 2010, there have been around 240 deaths a year in Great Britain involving a driver over the legal drink driving limit and in contrast to the previous decade, no progress has been made in reducing these numbers.”

The PACTS report mirrors recent research by IAM RoadSmart of over 2,000 motorists, which reveals overwhelming support from motorists to fit alcolocks in all new cars. 90 per cent of motorists support all new cars having built-in technology that immobilises the vehicle if the driver is over the limit.

From 2022 all new cars sold in Europe will be ‘alcolock enabled’ but it is up to the Government to decide how they will be used. IAM RoadSmart has previously stated they will be a useful tool to get drink drive offenders back to safer driving after a ban.

Neil added: “The evidence is clear. Nearly all motorists want new cars fitted with alcolocks to help stop the daily carnage on UK roads from drink driving and this latest PACTS report is even further endorsement.

“Apart from the human suffering caused, previous campaigns from IAM RoadSmart have found that the personal cost of a drink drive conviction could be as high as £70,000 when considering factors such as legal fees, higher car insurance premiums, alternative transport costs and potential loss of earnings following conviction – and that’s on top of possible imprisonment, lengthy bans and substantial fines.

“In the meantime, our message is clear. It must always be None for the Road”.

Read the full findings of the PACTS ‘Locking out the drink driver – using alcohol interlocks to reduce drink driving in the UK’, here.

90% of motorists want speed cameras to check for vehicle tax, insurance and MOT

The UK’s largest independent road safety charity is urging the police to take notice of UK motorists who are calling for them to better utilise equipment already available for speed detection to ensure vehicles have valid insurance, MOT and Vehicle Excise Duty (often referred to as road tax).

The findings come from new research conducted by IAM RoadSmart, which has revealed that nine-in-ten (90 per cent) motorists, who were surveyed as part of the charity’s annual Safety Culture Report, backed the idea that speed cameras should also be used to catch drivers who are flouting these motoring violations.

Estimates suggest that someone is injured every 20 minutes on UK roads by an uninsured driver* and that more than a quarter of motorists don’t even know when their vehicle’s next MOT is due, while there’s around 630,000 unlicenced vehicles in the UK.

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy & Research, said: “These results paint a very clear picture. Law-abiding motorists are in favour of the police using existing equipment to help make our roads safer by catching motorists who think the rules don’t apply to them.

“Of course, the primary purpose of catching speeding motorists is paramount but it should not be overlooked the suffering that drivers of vehicles which are uninsured, unlicenced and without a valid MOT can cause other road users.”

Meanwhile, further findings from the in-depth research of motorist attitudes by IAM RoadSmart discovered that an overwhelming majority, (82 per cent), also supported using cameras to automatically fine drivers who run red lights in urban areas.

The research also found that 80 per cent of motorists were in favour of using cameras to automatically fine drivers who drive more than 10mph over the speed limit on residential streets.

Neil added: “There is no excuse for speeding, driving uninsured, unlicenced or without a valid MOT. If speed camera partnerships are issuing speeding tickets they should also follow up on a wider range of offences and this is backed by the vast majority of drivers. 

“Getting law breakers off our roads could significantly help reduce the number of casualties caused by motorists with no regard for their motoring responsibilities.”

Life in the fast lane?

Pensioners have more penalty points than young drivers

There are more than 304,000 pensioners (over 65s) currently driving on UK roads with penalty points on their licence, nearly 25 times the number of young teenage drivers – of which there are just over 12,000 with penalty points.  

The findings, which came from a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the DVLA by the UK’s largest independent road safety charity – IAM RoadSmart – also revealed that the oldest person driving with points on their licence was 102 while there are more than 3,000 over the age of 90 currently driving with penalty points.

Overall, there are more drivers in their 30s with penalty points than any other age range (575,029), closely followed by those in their 40s (572,238) and then by those in their 50s (568,511). The highest single age with the greatest number of people with points was 49 (63,248).

Additional findings from the FOI discovered that there is up to 8,800 people still driving with more than 12 points – the amount at which you are disqualified – while the highest number of penalty points currently held by one individual is 68.  

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy & Research, said: “The findings from our Freedom of Information request are surprising. Speeding and other motoring misdemeanours are often associated with younger drivers but the findings clearly show there is a large number of older drivers also flouting the rules.

“Regardless of age, the message we need to get through is that road safety is paramount and we urge drivers of all ages to stick to the speed limits and ensure their vehicles are in a roadworthy condition.

“We also urge government to urgently revisit the issue of drivers with more than 12 points who still have not had their licences revoked. IAM RoadSmart has been raising this issue for almost a decade now and the problem still persists.

“It’s not by chance that certain drivers amass 12 or more points and they need to be removed from the public roads. By letting them keep their licence it undermines the simple “four strikes and you’re out” message and this urgently needs to be addressed.”

Road safety fears in Wester Drylaw as schools return

A scheme being introduced to make the journey to school safer may have the opposite effect, local residents fear.

The city council has pushed ahead with plans to close Wester Drylaw Avenue to through traffic and ‘Roads Closed’ signs were introduced at the weekend.

The placing of those signs has caused some confusion, however, and there are fears that the uncertainty may endanger Ferryhill schoolchildren when the school returns today. The situation has not been helped by the temporary signs being knocked over.

Inverleith Lib Dem Councillor Hal Osler said yesterday: “The confusing message on Wester Drylaw Avenue is exactly what locals were concerned about. The barrier has already been breached & cars are driving over the pavement. Instead of ensuring safe passage for vulnerable users, this is doing the opposite.

“I’ve Been up to Wester Drylaw Avenue to have a look at the “barriers” as it had been reported to me that met had already been “moved”. Whilst standing there two cars drove through one slightly over the pavement I was standing on.

“This is really poor and is exactly what we were all concerned about. I have reported this to officers as it’s supposed to be “monitored” and it deeply concerns me with pupils returning on Monday.

“If this continues please email me (Hal.osler@edinburgh.gov.uk) or the other ward councillors & we will pass all comments on to the Spaces for People team.”

Drylaw Telford Community Council is appealing to motorists to be extra vigilant in the area around the school.

The Spaces for People plan for Wester Drylaw Avenue was approved on 19 February. THe scheme was to be discussed at the community council’s regular meeting last month but the Zoom meeting had to be postponed.

Speeding less acceptable than five years ago, new research reveals

New research from the UK’s largest independent road safety charity, IAM RoadSmart, has revealed some positive long-term trends in relation to speeding behaviour in the UK with motorists now considering it less acceptable to speed than they did five years ago.

The findings come after recent provisional figures, released by the Department for Transport, highlighted that the number of UK road deaths was down significantly compared to the previous year due to less traffic being on the roads due to COVID-19.

IAM RoadSmart’s annual Safety Culture Report, which tracks drivers’ changing attitudes to key road safety issues over time, discovered that while there was a significant improvement towards speeding the figures were still worryingly high.

Out of the 2,000 motorists surveyed, 43 per cent (down from 55 per cent in 2016) thought it was acceptable to drive up to 80mph on a motorway and that 23 per cent (down from 28 per cent in 2016) thought it was acceptable to drive even faster than that.

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy & Research, said: “While there are signs of improvement, the results of this survey are still deeply concerning and there is clearly much more work to do on education and training.

“Speeding consistently causes more than 4,400 casualties on UK roads each year, which is an average of 12 people a day killed or injured on UK roads.”

The vast majority of drivers find it unacceptable to speed in towns and this has remained basically unchanged in the last five years. However, a disconcerting one in five of those surveyed still think it is acceptable to drive five miles-per-hour over the speed limit on a residential street and nearly one in ten thought it was acceptable to drive at these speeds outside a school. 

89 dashcam videos of driving offences sent to police every day

‘Always drive as if you are being watched by the police’ – RAC says dashcams are a ‘game changer’ in enforcement

As many as 89 dashcam video recordings of alleged motoring offences were submitted to police forces every day in 2019, according to data analysed by the RAC.

A total of 32,370 pieces of footage were received by 24 police forces that accept video evidence of driving offences from members of the public, double the number recorded in 2018 (15,159). Data from the RAC’s freedom of information request also shows that a quarter of these (25% – 8,148) went on to result in prosecutions.

Police forces, according to the RAC’s study, are making it increasingly easy for drivers and other road users to submit camera footage of unsuspecting alleged rule-breakers, with all of Britain’s 44 forces now accepting dashcam video, and the vast majority online via their websites.

The greatest number of potentially prosecutable offences in 2019 were – perhaps unsurprisingly – submitted to The Met Police, a total of 8,082. Surrey had the second highest tally with 3,542, followed by West Midlands – 3,242 in third spot and Gwent – 3,037 – in fourth. Greater Manchester received the fifth highest number of dashcam videos with 2,940.

The footage submitted to police related to the following offences: dangerous driving, careless driving/driving without due care and attention, driving too close to cyclists, contravening red traffic lights, contravening double white lines, contravening ‘no entry’ signs, illegal use of a handheld mobile phone and evidence of vehicles apparently without MOTs.

RAC road safety spokesman Simon Williams said: “Even before the decline in the number of roads police enforcing traffic offences, law-abiding drivers were often frustrated that there was never an officer there to deal with infringements they witnessed.

“The advent of dashcams, phones with cameras and helmet cameras have been a game changer as drivers can now easily submit footage to almost every police force.

“As so many drivers and cyclists are now using dashcams and helmet cameras every road user needs to be very conscious that any of their actions that aren’t in accordance with the law could end up with the police. Some will inevitably find this out the hard way while others will hopefully become increasingly mindful of it.

“In terms of how effective dashcams are from a law enforcement point of view our freedom of information request shows that one-in-four footage submissions lead to a successful prosecution.

“There are no doubt numerous reasons why this figure isn’t higher, but we suspect it has to do with the recorded evidence not being as conclusive as it needs to be. This may be due to the nature of the offence, with certain offences such as double white line, red traffic light and ‘no entry’ contraventions being easier to determine than illegal handheld mobile phone use and careless driving.

“It might also be the case that footage filmed on mobile phones is not as comprehensive for officers to work with as video evidence from dashcams and helmet cams which film live footage continuously when the vehicle is in motion. Those choosing to submit mobile phone video – whether as passengers or pedestrians – may well have missed the worst of the alleged offence as they reached to capture it.

“With more and more people getting dashcams the message for 2021 has to be: always drive as if you’re being watched by the police. If more drivers who are inclined to break the laws of the road were to think this way, the safer the roads would be for all of us.”

The RAC stocks a range of dashcams at varying price points at: 

www.racshop.co.uk/dash-cams.

Pothole ‘threat to personal safety’

Potholes overtake texting and drink driving in problem ratings

Potholes are perceived by motorists to be a much more significant concern on the road than they were three years ago, overtaking texting and drink driving as a worsening problem according to the findings of a new report from the UK’s largest road safety charity.

IAM RoadSmart’s annual Safety Culture Report, which tracks drivers’ changing attitudes to key road safety issues over time, discovered that three in four motorists (75 per cent) now perceive potholes to be a bigger issue for road users than they were three years ago. This was followed by driver distraction (68 per cent) – such as texting or talking on a mobile phone – and traffic congestion (65 per cent).

Further findings from the report, now in its sixth year and which involves surveying more than 2,000 motorists, also discovered that around nine in ten (89 per cent) drivers have been affected by potholes over the last year.

Meanwhile, just over one in three (31 per cent) drivers had changed their route to avoid a pothole with, more worryingly, more than half (54 per cent) having had to steer away or brake hard to avoid impact and damage.

Neil Greig, IAM RoadSmart Director of Policy & Research, said: “The pothole situation on UK roads has now become much more than just irritating, it’s a significant threat to personal safety.

“We simply can’t have vehicles swerving into oncoming traffic or slamming on their brakes without warning to avoid them. Deteriorating roads also put pedestrians and cyclists at greater risk.

“It is clearly a sign of the times when motorists perceive potholes to be a bigger growing concern to them than drink driving and texting. And while the statistics show that the devastating impacts of using a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol or using a mobile phone when driving still remain, it does highlight that it is time for government to take potholes seriously and fix the UK’s road network.”

Regionally, eight in ten (81 per cent) motorists in the South East considered potholes to be a bigger road safety issue than three years ago, compared with around six in ten in London (61 per cent) and the North East (64 per cent).

It is currently estimated that there are some 42,675 miles of UK roads classed as being in POOR structural condition, costing an estimated £11.14 billion to bring them up to a level which they could be maintained cost effectively going forward, according to Asphalt Industry Alliance*.

However, IAM RoadSmart’s research found of those motorists who had experienced a pothole only around one in ten (12 per cent) had enough damage to their car caused by the pothole to require a repair and only around one in six (16 per cent) had reported a pothole to the authorities.

Less than one in ten (7 per cent) made a claim for the damage.