Brake is calling on fleets and other organisations employing people who drive for work to ensure robust risk management policies are in place as it warns of increased road deaths in collisions involving commercial vehicles.
It is well documented that driving for work is one of the most dangerous things that employers ask their staff to do, and around a third of road deaths (and a fifth of serious injuries) involve someone driving for work.
Published for Road Safety Week 2023, analysis of government road casualty data by the road safety charity reveals that road deaths in collisions involving light goods vehicles (LGVs), heavy goods vehicles (HGVs), and buses and coaches all increased between 2021 and 2022.
In 2022, 214 people were killed in crashes involving LGVs, up 10% on 2021 figures; 220 people were killed in crashes involving HGVs, a 6% increase since 2021; and 45 people were killed in crashes involving buses or coaches, up 32% since 2021.
People who walk and cycle continue to be particularly vulnerable to collisions involving work vehicles. In 2022, 42 pedestrians died after being hit by an LGV, 41 after being hit by an HGV, and 20 after being hit by a bus or coach. Also in 2022, 12 cyclists died after being hit by an LGV, 6 after being hit by an HGV, and 5 after being hit by a bus or coach.
Brake’s analysis of the latest road casualty statistics also shows that, in 2022, 1,766 people died on UK roads (1,711 in Britain, 55 in Northern Ireland), a 10% increase on figures from the previous year. Its review of the data also found that in the same period, road deaths caused by drivers exceeding the speed limit rose by 20%.
More than 330 fleet organisations have signed up to take part in Road Safety Week 2023 by organising activities with their staff, sharing important road safety messages and asking why we still think it is ok to speed.
This year’s Road Safety Week will once again include a ‘Fleet Friday’ (on 24 November), which will champion outstanding work across the fleet industry to manage road risk for drivers and other road users, and prevent crashes involving work vehicles.
Fleet initiatives running throughout Road Safety Week include Trakm8’s annual Road Safety Hero Award, which invites customers to nominate an outstanding driver. The winner will be announced on Fleet Friday.
Cemex will send every one of its 2,000+ employees a Road Safety Week wheelie bin sticker and share key safety messages throughout the week.
Alltask will deliver a talk to its drivers about the risks associated with speed. They will also send information to drivers about speed scores taken from telematics in their vehicles.
Mida Civil Engineering will send road safety information directly to all its drivers via its bespoke app. All drivers will be required to read the information before carrying out vehicle checks.
Ross Moorlock, interim CEO at Brake, said: “The speed we choose to drive at can mean the difference between life and death. Our speed dictates whether we can stop in time to avoid a crash, and the force of impact if we can’t stop. This Road Safety Week, if you employ people who drive for work, I urge you to join the conversation and talk about speed. Please talk to as many people as you can, to find out why, when five people die on our roads every day, so many of us still choose to drive too fast.”
For more details of Road Safety Week 2023 and to access campaign materials, please click here.
