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| Statistical Bulletin - Transport Series | |||||||||||||
| Key 1997 Road Accident Statistics | |||||||||||||
| 1. Introduction 1.1. This bulletin presents some key statistics on injury road accidents (that is, road accidents in which one or more people are injured or killed) in Scotland in 1997. The figures in this bulletin were extracted from the Road Accidents statistical database at the end of April 1998. More detailed analyses will appear later, in the publication "Road Accidents Scotland 1997". They may differ slightly from the figures here, because they will have been extracted on a later date, and the database may have changed between the two dates due to (eg) late returns and amendments. For similar reasons, the figures given here for 1996 and earlier years may differ slightly from those published previously. 1.2. In this bulletin, the figures for 1997 are compared with the annual averages for the period 1981-85. This is done because, in 1987, the Government adopted the target of reducing the number of road casualties by one third from the 1981-85 average level by the year 2000. One way to assess progress towards this target is to compare actual casualties in each year after 1987 with an indicative line starting at the actual number of casualties in 1987 (the year of adopting the target), and assuming a constant percentage reduction in each subsequent year, down to the target figure for the year 2000. On this target line, total casualty numbers for the year 1997 should be about 28% below the 1981-85 average. (A note on the derivation of this figure is given in section 8.4.) 2. Main Points 2.1. The number of people fatally injured in road accidents in Scotland in 1997 was 377: an increase of 6% over the figure for 1996. However, the 1997 figure was the third lowest number recorded for at least 50 years. While the figures show a clear long-term downward trend since 1978, there is a suggestion that the numbers may now be levelling-off. The 1997 figure was 41% below the 1981-85 average number of fatalities per year. 2.2. There were 4,047 people recorded as seriously injured in road accidents in 1997, an increase of six over the number for 1996. This is the second lowest figure since records of the numbers of serious injuries began in 1950, and is 51% below the 1981-85 average. 2.3. There were 18,185 people recorded as slightly injured in 1997, 5% more than in 1996 and 0.4% below the 1981-85 average. 2.4. The total number of casualties in 1997 was 22,609, which was 4% higher than in 1996. It was, however, the fifth lowest figure in the past 40 years, and was 17% below the 1981-85 average. 2.5. Accidents on roads in non built-up areas accounted for three-quarters of fatalities compared with only two-fifths of the total number of casualties, presumably because average speeds are higher on such roads. 2.6. A total of 14,014 car users were injured in road accidents in 1997, 219 of whom died. There were 4,156 pedestrian casualties including 87 fatalities. Because of their greater vulnerability, 29% of pedestrian casualties were fatally or seriously injured, compared with 20% of all casualties. 2.7. There were 3,794 child casualties in 1997, including 26 fatalities. These numbers were less than in 1996, and were considerably below the 1981-85 average levels: the total number of casualties was 22% lower, and the number of deaths was 63% below the 1981-85 average level. 3. Numbers of Accidents (Table 1) 3.1. Table 1 shows the numbers of injury road accidents recorded by the police in 1997 and some earlier years. As noted earlier, the figures relate only to those accidents in which one or more people were killed or injured. Each accident is classified according to the severity of the most seriously injured casualty who was involved in it. 3.2. Although the numbers of injury road accidents have been falling in most years since 1989, the number of fatal accidents in 1997 (340) rose by 8% compared to the figure for 1996 (316). The number of serious injury accidents in 1997 (3,312) was three fewer than the figure for 1996 (3,315). The number of "slight injury" accidents in 1997 (12,982) increased by 4% over the figure for 1996 (12,437). 4. Numbers of Casualties by Severity (Table 2) 4.1. Numbers fatally injured The number of people fatally injured in road accidents in Scotland in 1997 was 377. Although this is 6% higher than the figure for 1996, it was the third lowest number recorded for at least 50 years (information about road accident fatalities prior to 1947 is not readily available). The only two years which had fewer road deaths than 1997 were 1996 (357 deaths) and 1994 (363 deaths). With a few exceptions, there has been a fall in each year since 1978, and for most of that period the figures show a clear, steady long-term downward trend. However, there is a suggestion that the numbers may now be levelling-off: the 1997 figure of 377 is only slightly below the average for the previous four years of 382. The 1997 figure was 41% below the 1981-85 average number of fatalities per year, and therefore the target of a one-third reduction by the year 2000 has already been reached. 4.2. Numbers seriously injured There were 4,047 people recorded as seriously injured in road accidents in 1997. This is the second lowest figure since records of the numbers of serious injuries began in 1950. The only year with fewer serious injuries than 1997 was 1996, which had 4,041: just six fewer. Once again, the long-term trend shows that the numbers are falling. The 1997 figure is 51% below the 1981-85 average, so this target has been reached before 2000. 4.3. Numbers slightly injured There were 18,185 people recorded as slightly injured in 1997: 5% more than in 1996. While the number of people with slight injuries is well below the most recent short-term peak level (20,423 in 1990), having fallen in each of the following five years, the increases in 1996 and 1997 may represent a levelling-off. The 1997 figure is only 0.4% below the 1981-85 average, and so is considerably above the year 2000 target. 4.4. Total numbers of casualties The total number of casualties (of all severities) in 1997 was 22,609, which was 4% higher than in 1996. However, this represented the fifth lowest figure in the past 40 years, and the only four years with lower figures were the preceding four years. The total number of casualties has fallen markedly from the level of the most recent "short-term" peak (which was over 27,000 in 1989 and 1990). The 1997 total was 17% below the 1981-85 average, and therefore above the target line. 5. Casualties by Type of Road (Table 3) 5.1. In 1997, "non built-up" roads (see the definition in section 8.3) accounted for about two-fifths of the total number of casualties (41%: 9,178 out of 22,609). However, presumably because average speeds are higher on non built-up roads than elsewhere, they accounted for three-quarters of fatal injuries (76%: 287 out of 377) and for half of the total number of fatal and serious injuries combined (52%: 2,279 out of 4,424). 5.2. Compared with the 1981-85 average, the fall in the total number of casualties has been greater for "built-up" roads (23%) than elsewhere (6%), and the difference between the two types of road is even greater for the numbers fatally injured (down by 67% for built-up roads compared with 21% elsewhere). However, since the start of the 1980s, some traffic will have been transferred away from built-up roads by the opening of city and town bypasses, and by the construction of unrestricted roads with higher average traffic volumes. Therefore, these figures do not provide an accurate measure of the comparative change in the road safety performance of "built-up" and "non built-up" roads. 6. Casualties by Mode of Transport (Table 3) 6.1. Car users A total of 14,014 car users were injured in road accidents, representing three-fifths of all casualties (62%: 14,014 out of 22,609). Of these people, a total of 2,365 were either fatally or seriously injured, 219 of whom died. Non built-up roads accounted for a little over half of all car user casualties (54%: 7,501 out of 14,014). Presumably because average speeds are higher on non-built up roads, they accounted for much higher percentages of the total numbers of car users who were fatally injured (90%: 197 out of 219) or were fatally or seriously injured (73%: 1,733 out of 2,365). Although the number of car user fatalities in 1997 was 18% higher than the 1996 figure, it was still 21% below the 1981-85 average level. The number who were fatally or seriously injured, and the total number of casualties (of all severities), also showed increases, over the 1996 figures, of 3% and 8% respectively. The total number of car user casualties was 13% above the 1981-85 average, making car users the only group for whom the total number of casualties is significantly higher than the average 1981-85 level. 6.2. Pedestrians There were 4,156 pedestrian casualties in 1997: a fifth of all casualties (18%: 4,156 out of 22,609). Of these, 1,210 were fatally or seriously injured (87 died). Presumably because of the greater vulnerability of pedestrians, 29% of pedestrian casualties were fatally or seriously injured (1,210 out of 4,156) compared with 20% of all casualties (4,424 out of 22,609). About 95% of pedestrian casualties occurred on built-up roads (3,963 out of 4,156). Perhaps because of higher average speeds on non built-up roads, 52% of the pedestrian casualties on such roads were serious injuries or fatalities (101 out of 193) compared with 28% on built-up roads (1,109 out of 3,963). The number of pedestrian casualties in 1997 was 4% less than in 1996, and 37% below the 1981-85 average. The numbers of pedestrian fatalities, and of fatal and serious injuries, in 1997 were respectively 63% and 54% less than the 1981-85 average levels. 6.3. Other casualties Together, all other modes of transport accounted for a fifth of casualties in 1997, and for similar proportions of the numbers of fatalities and serious injuries. There were 1,272 pedal cyclist casualties in 1997, including 211 fatal or serious injuries (9 died). Although in total there were fewer motor cycle casualties (948) than pedal cycle casualties, more motor cyclists than pedal cyclists suffered fatal or serious injuries (358, of whom 37 died), presumably due to higher average speeds. A total of 942 bus and coach users were injured, of whom 55 suffered fatal or serious injuries (2 died) - these low proportions presumably being due to the greater protection of their passengers by buses and coaches. The number of motor cycle casualties in 1997 represented only 28% of the 1981-85 average, and the total of the numbers fatally or seriously injured was 26% of the 1981-85 level. The reductions of around three-quarters in motor cyclist casualty numbers were considerably greater than the reductions for other modes of transport. 7. Child Casualties (Table 4) 7.1. Child casualties There were 3,794 child casualties in 1997, representing under a fifth of the total number of casualties of all ages (17%: 3,794 out of 22,609). Of the child casualties, 744 were fatalities or serious injuries, of whom 26 died. These numbers were all less than the 1996 figures, and considerably below the 1981-85 average levels: the number of casualties was 22% lower, and the number of deaths was 63% below the 1981-85 average level. 7.2. Child pedestrians There were 1,894 child pedestrian casualties in 1997. They accounted for 46% of all pedestrian casualties of all ages (1,894 out of 4,156). Of the child pedestrian casualties, 504 were fatalities or serious injuries (15 died). Again, all these figures were less than in 1996, and were considerably below the corresponding 1981-85 averages. 7.3. Children in cars In 1997, there were 1,176 child casualties in cars, 8% of the total number of car user casualties of all ages (1,176 out of 14,014). Of the child casualties in cars, 138 were fatalities or serious injuries (9 died). While the number of child car user fatalities and serious injuries was 23% below the 1981-85 average, the total number of child car user casualties (of all severities) was 32% above the 1981-85 average. 7.4. Other child casualties In 1997, there were 518 child pedal cycle casualties (41% of the total of 1,272 pedal cycle casualties of all ages), 137 child bus and coach user casualties (15% of the total of 942 of all ages) and 69 other child casualties. The child pedal cycle casualties included 78 fatalities and serious injuries, of whom one died. The total number of child pedal cycle casualties in 1997 was 32% below the 1981-85 average, and the number of child bus and coach user casualties was 16% lower than the 1981-85 average. 8. Sources and Definitions 8.1. The sources of the data The statistics in this bulletin were compiled from returns made by police forces, which cover all accidents in which a vehicle is involved that occur on roads (including footways) and result in personal injury, if they become known to the police. The vehicle need not be moving, and need not be in collision - for example, the returns include accidents involving people alighting from buses. "Damage only" accidents are not included in this definition. 8.2. The definition of "severity" For the purposes of the Road Accidents statistical returns:
a fatal injury is one which causes death less than 30 days after the
accident; a serious accident is one in which at least one person is seriously
injured, but no-one suffers a fatal injury; Over the years, improvements in vehicle design, and the provision and use of additional
safety features, together with changes in the law (eg on the fitting and wearing of
seatbelts), will have all helped to reduce the severity of the injuries suffered in some
accidents. Road safety measures should also have reduced the levels of injuries sustained
- for example, if traffic calming schemes reduce average speeds and hence reduce the
speeds at which collisions occur. In addition, the distinction between "serious"
and "slight" injuries could be affected by factors such as changes in
hospitals’ admission policies. For example, all else being equal, the number of
"serious injury" cases would rise, and the number of "slight injury"
cases would fall, if it became standard procedure for a hospital to keep in overnight, for
precautionary reasons, casualties with a particular type of injury (section 2.3 of the
1995 bulletin explained that part of the increase in "serious injury" cases in
1994 was due to hospitals admitting more child casualties for overnight observation).
There could also be changes in hospitals’ procedures that would reduce the numbers of
"serious injury" cases. In addition, there is anecdotal evidence that changes in
procedures for assigning severity codes may affect the categorisation of injuries. For
example, different severity codes might be assigned by a police officer who was at the
scene of an accident and by a clerk who bases the code on a police officer’s written
description of the accident. Therefore, it is possible that some of the changes shown in
the figures for "serious injuries" and "slight injuries" may be
affected by changes in administrative practices, which may have altered the proportion of
accidents which is categorised as "serious".
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