This paper indicates ways in which fatalities and injuries from driving too fast can be reduced, and recommends what needs to be done about this situation in the UK, how, and by whom. It was prepared by collaboration between the Road Environment, Road User Behaviour, and Vehicle Design Working Parties of PACTS (Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety). Speed contributes to too many road accidents. The higher a vehicle's speed, the greater the risk of an accident, and the more serious the level of impact injury. Politicians must take and sustain effective action against this problem. The Government must initiate a comprehensive strategy for tackling the problem of excessive and inappropriate speed, and coordinate a range of actions at national, local, and individual levels. Public attitudes to speeding will be changed only by applying a combination of education, enforcement, environmental, and technological measures. The road environment can be changed by measures such as speed limits, engineering, traffic calming, safety management, and a road safety audit. peed can also be managed by measures applied to vehicles. People can be informed by training, education, and publicity. Encouragement must be accompanied by enforcement. New technology can promote appropriate speeds in several ways.
Samenvatting