Progress towards casualty reduction targets for 2020
Key Reported Road Casualties Scotland 2020
Progress towards casualty reduction targets for 2020
Introduction
The Scottish Government recently published a new Road Safety Framework to 2030.
The previous road safety framework was launched in June 2009 and included Scotland-specific targets due for delivery in 2020. These targets and milestones are included in Table 2. Each reduction target is assessed against the 2004/08 average.
In addition to the above four targets a pre-existing target (a ten per cent reduction in the slight casualty rate) continued to be adopted. Progress is assessed towards a milestone in 2015 and the final target by means of an indicative trend based on a constant annual percentage reduction.
| Target | 2015 milestone % reduction | 2020 target % reduction |
|---|---|---|
| People killed | 30% | 40% |
| People seriously injured | 43% | 55% |
| Children (aged < 16) killed * | 35% | 50% |
| Children (aged < 16) seriously injured | 50% | 65% |
As outlined above, the number of serious and slight casualties cannot be directly compared to previously recorded figures due to changes in severity reporting.
Progress against the serious casualty reduction targets are therefore based on adjusted figures, produced by the Department for Transport. The adjusted figures show how many slight and serious casualties there would have been in previous years if they had been recorded using the same sort of reporting system that Police Scotland use currently.
Target: 40% reduction in those killed by 2020
There were 142 people killed in 2020, a 51% reduction from the 2004-08 baseline average. Provisionally, the decrease seen to 2020 has exceeded the framework target for 2020 (a reduction of 40% from 2004-08). Figure 12 shows that the total number of fatalities in 2020 was below the indicative line required to achieve the target and has been for the past few years.
Target: 55% reduction in those seriously injured by 2020
Due to changes in severity reporting, progress against this target is measured on the basis of adjusted figures provided by the Department for Transport. These figures illustrate how many casualties there would have been in previous years if they had been recorded using an injury-based recording system. On the basis of the adjusted figures, there were 1,539 serious injuries in 2020, a 68% reduction since the adjusted 2004-08 baseline level.
Figure 13 shows that, provisionally, the reduction has exceeded the framework target for 2020 (a reduction of 55% from 2004-08). Prior to the casualty reductions in 2020, Scotland was not on track to meet this target.
Target: 50% reduction in children killed by 2020
Due to small numbers and year-to-year fluctuations this target is measured using a three-year average. An average of 4 children a year were killed in the 2018-2020 period, a 76% reduction from the 2004-2008 baseline. Figure 14 shows that the reduction has provisionally exceeded the 2020 target.
Target: 65% reduction in children seriously injured by 2020
Due to changes in severity reporting, progress against this target is measured on the basis of adjusted figures provided by the Department for Transport. These figures illustrate how many casualties there would have been in previous years if they had been recorded using an injury-based recording system. On the basis of the adjusted figures, there were 144 serious injuries in 2020, a 77% reduction since the adjusted 2004-08 baseline level. Figure 15 shows that the decrease has provisionally exceeded the framework target for 2020 (a reduction of 65% from 2004-08). Prior to the casualty reductions in 2020, Scotland was not on track to meet the target.
Target: 10% reduction in the slightly injured rate by 2020
Due to changes in severity reporting, progress against this target is measured on the basis of adjusted figures provided by the Department for Transport. These figures illustrate how many casualties there would have been in previous years if they had been recorded using an injury-based recording system. On the basis of the adjusted figures, the casualty rate for slight injuries in 2020 was, 9 per million vehicle kilometres, a 68% reduction since the adjusted 2004-08 baseline level. Figure 16 shows that the decrease has provisionally exceeded the framework target for 2020 (a reduction of 10% from 2004-08).
Figure 12: Progress towards casualties killed reduction target.
Figure 13: Progress towards casualties seriously injured reduction target.
Figure 14: Progress towards children killed reduction target.
Figure 15: Progress towards children seriously injured reduction target.
Figure 16: Progress towards slightly injured casualty rate reduction target.
