Plea To Suffolk Road Users 4th Jan 2010

Road safety bosses at Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Police issue a plea for Suffolk’s drivers to take more care of themselves and other road users when driving in 2010.

Provisional figures show the number of people killed on Suffolk’s roads rose 35%, from 31 in 2008 to 42 in 2009. The level of seriously injured road users remained almost unchanged at around 350.

Guy McGregor, Suffolk’s Portfolio Holder for Roads and Transport, said: “Nationally, we have some of the safest roads in the world but that success was only achieved by working hard to reduce road casualties in every region and county. These latest figures for Suffolk indicate much of the recent increase in road deaths was owing to driver error and not to any deterioration in road surfaces or increased numbers of vehicles.

“Every road death is a tragedy. All drivers should be alert to potential dangers and drive responsibly, with the utmost care“.

Analysis of the data reveals some worrying trends – for example they show an increase in motorcyclists being killed, 11 in 2009 compared to 7 in 2008. There have also been an increased number of younger drivers or passengers killed or seriously injured - 14 people aged 16 -24 year died on our roads this year. Police estimate about half of these casualties were owing to drivers losing control, driving too fast for the prevailing conditions or exceeding the speed limit.

There has also been an increase in the number of pedestrians being killed or seriously injured in the last two years. There were 47 casualties in 2007 which rose to 64 in 2008 and 69 in 2009.The majority of serious collisions involving pedestrians were in urban areas involving children or the 25-29 age group. A substantial proportion simply failed to look properly.

Mike Bacon, Chief Inspector Operations, commented: “Firstly, our thoughts are with all those who have lost their loved ones throughout 2009. Despite all our efforts, it has been a disappointing year we have seen far too many people die on Suffolk’s roads.

"We work tirelessly to tackle this issue and our commitment to reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured will continue into 2010. Robust enforcement will take place against those breaking road related laws. However, I would like to remind everyone that they need to take responsibility for themselves and others. Your life and others are in your hands. Sadly the majority of collisions are caused by driver error so it is vital road users remain alert and adhere to road safety rules."

Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Police are committed to work in partnership to improve road safety in Suffolk and reducing road casualties. A new action plan is being prepared for 2010 which includes road safety education, safety engineering scheme and targeted enforcement. However both organisations are repeating their plea that Suffolk drivers need play their part, not only for themselves but for their families and friends and the rest of the community.