Reported Road Casualties 2011
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24 October 2012
Reported road accident and casualty statistics are released today by Transport Scotland’s Statistician. This reference document updates provisional figures published in June and presents more detailed analysis, including estimates of drink driving accidents, accident costs, comparisons with other countries and other data sources and an article looking at relative levels and trends for the priorities set out in Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2020.
Main Findings
Road casualties
- 186 deaths on Scotland's roads in 2011 - 11% fewer than in 2010 (208), 47% fewer than 2001 (348) and the lowest figure since records began;
- 1,875 reported seriously injured in 2011 - 5% fewer than in 2010 (1,968), 45% fewer than 2001 (3,410) and the lowest number since records began;
- 12,770 reported casualties in total in 2011 - 4% fewer than in 2010 (13,338) and a 36% reduction on 2001 (19,911).
- 1,315 child casualties, 5% fewer than in 2010 (1,378) and 55% fewer than 2001 (2,923)
- 7 child fatalities in 2011, 3 more than 2010 and an average of 5 over the last three years.
Scotland’s road safety framework casualty reduction targets to 2020
Casualty numbers continue to fall. Compared with the baseline averages for 2004-08, in 2011:
- 36% fewer people were killed
- 28% fewer people were seriously injured
- The number of child fatalities is relatively small and the average of 5 over the last 3 years is well below the baseline of 15;
- 38% fewer children were seriously injured,
- the slight casualty rate (per 100 million vehicle kms) was 35% lower.
Road accidents
- 9,974 reported injury accidents in 2011 - 3% fewer than in 2010 and the lowest number since accident records began in 1966;
- 176 fatal accidents - 7% fewer than in 2010 (note that a fatal accident may involve more than one fatality).
- Since 2001, reported injury road accidents have fallen by 32% whilst road traffic volume increased by 8%.
Types of road users
- 7,770 car user casualties in 2011, 6% fewer than 2010 and 37% less than 2001;
- Including 89 fatalities (15% fewer than 2010) and 756 seriously injured (16% fewer than 2010).
- 2,059 pedestrian casualties in 2011, 2% more than 2010 and 40% less than 2001;
- Including 43 fatalities (9% less than 2010) and 513 seriously injured (12% more than 2010).
- 808 motorcyclist casualties in 2011, 4% fewer than 2010 and 31% lower than 2001;
- Including 33 fatalities (6% fewer than 2010) and 482 seriously injured (2% fewer than 2010).
- 824 pedal cyclist casualties in 2011, 6% more than 2010 and 10% fewer than 2001;
- Including 7 fatalities (the same as 2010) and 156 seriously injured (13% more than 2010).
- Twenty one per cent of car drivers involved in injury accidents are young drivers (aged 17-25) a fall from 25 per cent in 2004-2008. The fatal accident proportion has fallen from 27 per cent to 21 per cent over the same period.
- Young male car drivers (aged 17-25) were more likely to be involved in road accidents, though the accident rates are reducing. In 2011 the accident rate for young drivers was one and three quarters times the accident rate of car drivers of all ages (4.9 per thousand population vs. 2.8 per thousand population). This is a reduction from 2.24 times the accident rate for all drivers in 2004-2008.
Types of road
- 66% of all road deaths (122 out of 186) in 2011 occurred on non-built up areas (i.e. speed limit greater than 40 mph), though fatality rates per distance travelled are similar to roads in built up areas;
- 53% of people who were seriously injured (1,000 out of 1,875) were involved in accidents on built-up roads;
- Motorways have the lowest accident rates. Fatal accident rates tend to be higher on non built-up roads and rates are highest on B roads. Overall accident rates (including slight injury accidents) tend to be highest for built-up B, C and unclassified roads.
Comparison with England and Wales
- Relative to England & Wales, Scotland’s casualty rates (per population) remain:
- higher for fatalities, though the gap narrowed in the last year;
- similar for serious injuries, with 2011 rates slightly lower than England and Wales
- lower for all severities.
Comparison with countries in Western Europe and elsewhere
- Road fatality rate: Scotland (35 per million population) had the 5th lowest rate of the 39 countries for which figures are available; (2011);
- Pedestrian fatality rate: Scotland (9 per million population) had the 14th lowest rate (of 31 countries); (2010 latest year available).
- Child fatality rate: Scotland (4 per million population aged under 15) had the 4th lowest rate (of 31 countries for which figures are available); (2010 is the latest year available.
- 65+ fatality rate: Scotland (40 per million population aged 65+) had the 5th lowest rate (of 31 countries); (2010 latest year available).
Drink-driving
- 750 casualties (6% of all reported casualties) were estimated to be due to drink-drive accidents in Scotland in 2010 (the latest year available), the same level as in GB as a whole.
- Around 20 fatalities (12% of all reported fatalities) were estimated to be due to drink-drive accidents in Scotland in 2010, similar to GB as a whole. A fall on 2009 but the average for the last five years remains at 30 fatalities.
- Casualties resulting from drink drive accidents fell by 35% since 2000 (from 1,150 to 750).
- In 2011, 3.4% of drivers involved in injury accidents who were asked for a breath test registered a positive reading or refused to take the test.
Accident costs
- The estimated total cost of all road accidents (including damage only accidents) fell by 6%, from £1,208 million in 2010 to £1,140 million in 2011 (in 2010 prices), this is partly the result of a fall in the average number of casualties per accident from 1.30 in 2010 to 1.28 in 2011.
