Seventy two drivers killed on Midlands country roads in one year
Seventy-two drivers in the region were killed on country roads in a year and almost 500 were seriously injured, new figures revealed today.
The figures for the West Midlands – including Shropshire – have been unveiled as part of a campaign launched to get people to slow down on country roads. It comes amid statistics showing drivers are 11 times more likely to be killed on country roads than on motorways.
The Department for Transport has revealed a third of drivers in the region have had a near miss or collision on a country road. There were 72 fatalities and 486 serious injuries on rural roads.
The DfT's Think! campaign said 60 per cent of people killed on Britain's roads die on rural roads, and new research shows many more drivers are putting themselves at risk of an accident.
Star comment: Long road to safety, so Think!
More than a third, 37 per cent, have been surprised by an unexpected hazard, such as an animal. Two fifths also confess to taking a bend too fast.
The new Think! campaign urges drivers using country roads to read the road ahead and anticipate potential hazards; drive at a speed that allows them to stop in the distance they can see to be clear; stay in control and leave time to react by braking before a bend, not on it and give cyclists and horse riders plenty of space when overtaking.
Road safety minister Robert Goodwill said: "Britain's roads are among the safest in the world, but most people don't know that motorists are eleven times more likely to die in an accident on a country road than on a motorway. On average three people die every day on Britain's country roads and these are needless tragedies.
"I want the public to understand these risks and adapt their driving to the conditions they face. That is why the new Think! Country Road Campaign is so important – we are urging drivers to read the road ahead, select a safe speed and brake before the bend."
The campaign has been backed by British Touring Car Championship driver James Cole.
A new advertising campaign uses 3D scanning technology to illustrate that country roads are full of unforeseen hazards.
