Slow move to road safety

12:27pm Friday 21st November 2008

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BRITAIN already has some of the safest roads in the world. The number of people killed or injured on our roads has fallen dramatically in the past 20 years.

Last year, 2,946 road users were killed – less than half the number who died 30 years earlier, despite a massive increase in traffic.

Speed cameras and shocking TV adverts have undoubtedly played a part, but so have major improvements in active safety equipment – such as air bags and anti-lock brakes – fitted to new cars.

The UK has a good road safety record, but not good enough. Ministers want to see further improvements in line with ambitious targets laid down for 2010.

But if they are to succeed, more has to be done to kerb many motorists’ appetite for speed.

Under new proposals, drivers who break the limit by a large margin – expected to be 20mph or more – could be given six penalty points, meaning a ban after just two offences because anyone with 12 points is automatically disqualified.

This would place more than a million drivers on the brink of a ban because they already have six or more points on their licence. Critics say the proposals will double the number of drivers serving a ban.

But is that such a bad thing? Do we really want irresponsible motorists who speed past schools or through busy towns to be let off with a slap on the wrist?

As the television advertisements say, speed kills. A child knocked down at 30mph stands a far greater chance of surviving than a youngster involved in a 40mph collision.

We believe a sliding scale of punishment makes sense – provided the crackdown on high speeds is matched by a commensurate reduction in punishments for drivers who exceed the limit by just a few miles per hour. A new offence of drug-driving is also welcome.

Only when speeding becomes as socially unacceptable as drink-driving will we really start to drive those casualty figures down even further.