When there were only two million motor vehicles in Britain, they killed more people every year than our 27 million vehicles do today. There is no question that we have had a long, successful period in which the number of serious casualties has gone down and down. And we have held slight casualties well below the increase in traffic. Everybody can take credit for that. Great Britain has the best road safety record in Europe apart from Sweden.
Nevertheless, no one can be satisfied when just under 10 people are killed and 110 people are seriously injured every day on the roads. That is unacceptable and it is not inevitable. We have to make further efforts aimed at eliminating the principal causes of this suffering.
The overall number of children who die in road accidents is also among the lowest, but the number of child pedestrians killed 103 in 1998 is high in comparison with other European countries. This demands and will get specific action.
Safety is the most important responsibility of anyone involved in transport, whatever mode we are talking about. It is no different on the roads. But there everyone has a stake. Government, local authorities, police officers, civil engineers, car makers all have a role in creating the conditions for safe travel, telling us about them and enforcing them to the benefit of all of us. New technology too will continue to play an important role. But we all have a responsibility as users drivers, riders, walkers, all of us.
This document sets out the main ways we plan to improve road safety in the next decade. Many interested individuals and organisations have provided helpful input, including the Motorists Forum and other road user groups. To encourage our collective efforts we are putting forward a target to reduce deaths and serious injuries overall by 40% and by 50% for children and also to keep slight injuries well below the increase in traffic. Government will give the lead, but every user has a responsibility to help us make the roads safer for everyone.
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Larry Whitty |
Sarah Boyack |
Peter Law |
1.1 Road accidents cause immense human suffering. Every year, around 3,500 people are killed on Britain's roads and 40,000 are seriously injured. In total, there are over 300,000 road casualties, in nearly 240,000 accidents, and about fifteen times that number of non-injury incidents. This represents a serious economic burden; the direct cost of road accidents involving deaths or injuries is thought to be in the region of £3billion a year.
1.2 Nevertheless, Britain has had - relatively speaking - remarkable success in reducing road casualties. And this is despite the vast growth in traffic since the beginning of the last century. In 1930 there were only 2.3 million motor vehicles in Great Britain, but over 7,000 people were killed in road accidents. Today, there are over 27 million vehicles on our roads but far fewer road deaths.
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Indices of traffic and casualties: 1949-1998 |
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1.3 In 1987 a target was set to reduce road casualties by one-third by 2000 compared with the average for 1981-85. We have more than achieved this target for reducing deaths and serious injuries. Road deaths have fallen by 39% and serious injuries by 45% and we are now one of the safest countries in Europe and indeed the world. However, there has not been any such steep decline in the number of accidents, nor in the number of slight injuries, although improvements in vehicle design have helped to reduce the severity of injuries to car occupants.
1.4 There is no reason for us to be complacent. We know we can reduce road casualties still further. That is why we are setting a new 10-year target and launching this new road safety strategy. We need new targets to help everyone to focus on achieving a further substantial improvement in road safety over the next 10 years. By 2010 we want to achieve, compared with the average for 1994-98:
1.5 Although our overall record for child safety is relatively good, our child pedestrian record is poor compared with some European countries. We are particularly concerned about child safety and there is therefore a special focus in this strategy on reducing the number of children who are killed or injured in road accidents.
1.6 The new targets will certainly be challenging. Reductions in the last period were helped by marked changes in attitudes to drink-driving and legislation on seat belts. But with sustained effort, we believe that the new targets are achievable by 2010. Reducing road casualties in this way would also contribute to the targets for overall accident reduction set by the Saving Lives: Our Healthier Nation White Paper and the equivalent Scottish White Paper Towards a Healthier Scotland.
1.7 The targets can serve to focus everyone's efforts on achieving a further substantial improvement in road safety over the next 10 years.
1.8 The Government cannot achieve such a major improvement in road safety on its own - working in partnership will be essential. The main partners include:
1.9 We want to engage everyone in the new strategy, committed to the new targets and joining together in a combined effort to reduce deaths and injuries on our roads.
1.10 To improve road safety, there needs to be effective cross-governmental thinking and action.
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The wider context |
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Health: reducing road accidents will help achieve the Government's overall target to cut accidents from all causes, set out in the Saving Lives: Our Healthier Nation White Paper. A pan-Government strategy to tackle alcohol misuse in England is also being developed. A priority area for that strategy is likely to be addressing issues concerned with all aspects of improving community safety, including road safety. It is planned to publish the new strategy early in 2000. The Scottish Executive has established a committee to develop a new national alcohol misuse strategy for Scotland. |
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Environment: reducing speed and managing traffic better helps wider environmental objectives as well as road safety, for example by cutting CO2 and other emissions and reducing noise. |
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Education: effective road safety education will help to improve our child road safety record. |
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Social inclusion: safer roads can help build stronger communities, so improving road safety should be included in measures to regenerate urban areas and marginalised communities. Deprived areas have relatively poor road safety records. |
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Fighting Crime: tackling road crime such as speeding and dangerous driving is an important part of the wider crime reduction agenda. |
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Europe: we need to work closely with our partners in Europe on road safety issues, as most standards for vehicle safety and increasingly licensing qualifications are determined at European Union level. |
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International Development: Britain's good road safety record means that we can offer other countries our expertise on road design and vehicle safety and road safety policies. |
1.11 The rest of this document sets out the
Government's framework for improving road safety.
There are 10 main themes:
1.12 The strategy contains many specific recommendations, but these should not be seen as strict guidelines for the future. Inevitably in the course of 10 years, new ideas and technology will emerge which will help to achieve the target.
1.13 We must be alive to new thinking and fresh ideas and not be afraid to challenge conventional wisdom. This is why, in addition to keeping a constant watchful eye on progress, we will evaluate progress on our strategy and targets formally every three years. If we can do better, we will, especially if we are able to increase resources. To help us with this, we will set up a Road Safety Advisory Panel which will include representatives of the main stakeholders.
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Implement |
Implement |
Longer |
Primary |
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Set up Road Safety Advisory Panel |
Y |
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Evaluate progress towards targets every three years |
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Y |
Y |
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1 Many aspects of road safety, including national speed limits, driver training and testing and vehicle safety, are reserved to the UK Government. Scottish Ministers and the National Assembly for Wales have concurrent responsibility with the UK Government for the promotion of road safety in Scotland and Wales respectively. Implementation of the strategy will therefore be taken forward by the UK and devolved administrations in accordance with their respective roles and responsibilities. Northern Ireland will have its own road safety strategy.
2.1 Children should be able to walk and cycle in safety. They need the freedom to use the roads for their social development and the exercise for their general health and fitness. We want to make it safer for everyone to encourage healthy travel choices. Yet road traffic accidents are the leading cause of accidental injury amongst children and young people. Every year, over 130 children die and more than 4,500 are seriously injured while walking and cycling, many of them close to their homes. Another 60 die and over 1,100 are seriously injured travelling in cars.
International comparisons
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Child pedestrian fatality rate per 100,000 : 1997 |
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Country |
Children 0-14 |
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Great Britain |
1.21 |
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Austria |
0.79 |
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Belgium |
0.94 |
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Denmark |
0.85 |
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Finland |
0.94 |
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France |
0.91 |
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Germany |
0.64 |
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Ireland |
1.31 |
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Italy |
0.49 |
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Netherlands |
0.66 |
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Norway |
0.81 |
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Spain |
0.94 |
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Sweden |
0.54 |
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Switzerland |
0.96 |
2.2 Our overall rate of serious road injuries to children is better than the European average. But, despite recent improvements, our child pedestrian record is still particularly poor, especially compared with other European countries. We must do better.
2.3 There will be a target for reducing deaths and serious injuries to children of 50% by 2010.
2.4 Children will benefit from the broad range of proposed road safety policies outlined in the rest of this document but, some measures, such as traffic calming, produce greater than average benefits for children. This, combined with a range of child safety specific policies, makes the more stringent target of 50% feasible.
2.5 This chapter provides a summary of actions we will take to improve child safety, many of which are covered in more detail in other chapters, and details of how to equip children with the life skills needed to enable them to travel safely and become responsible road users.
2.6 We have a duty to teach children the basic skills appropriate to their ages and help parents and teachers to get them across. Our action plan below identifies the four key stages in road safety education we aim to tackle:
2.7 Local authority road safety officers play a vital role in education. The police, health promotion officers, health visitors and various charities, such as the Child Accident Prevention Trust (CAPT) and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), also make a major contribution. In Scotland the Scottish Road Safety Campaign is also a key player. We want parents to become more involved; and we must remember we all have a part to play by setting a responsible example.
2.8 We shall continue our programme of research, to understand problems better and to develop solutions.
2.9 Research is helping us identify more clearly the groups of children most at risk:
The graphs below show the current position.
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Casualty rate by age group and road user group: 1998 |
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Child pedestrian casualties by age and sex :1998 |
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2.10 To understand why our children are at more risk than their European counterparts, we compared child pedestrian activity and accident sites in the UK, France and the Netherlands. We found significant differences.
Actions that will specifically benefit children's road safety are:
2.11 For this age group, we need to provide parents with the tools to increase awareness of risks and to teach basic road safety skills.
2.12 Departments have joined together to press home the safety message early with a project called One Step Ahead. We commissioned the Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) and CAPT to develop a series of four magazines for parents of children up to three years old. The first two magazines were launched in the autumn of 1999. Our support will continue.
2.13 The magazines explain how to avoid accidents inside and outside the home, and how to deal with them if they do occur. Superdrug and Kimberley-Clark are funding the design, printing and distribution of the magazines. They have been designed to appeal particularly to low income families. This is a part of the Government's policy to fight social inequality.
2.14 Child seats and restraints save lives. Many of us,
parents or not, find the fitting instructions puzzling.
Standard attachment points on both child restraints and cars
would make it much easier.
We are taking a leading role in developing a standardised
method called the ISOFIX system, and we are pressing for it
to be adopted as the European norm.
2.15 Road safety and health groups around the country have co-ordinated some very successful local initiatives. The Gloucestershire Action Group, for example, trained local fire-fighters, who now provide a free fitting check for people carrying children in the car. The magazine 'Mother and Baby' also promotes safe fitting in conjunction with Safeway.
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Traffic Clubs |
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Traffic clubs were first introduced in 1981 following successful trials in Scandinavia.
Health authorities supply the local council with
names and addresses of children approaching three
years old. On their third birthday, the council sends
each child a book introducing road safety ideas and
activities which parents can use as a teaching aid.
If they choose to join the 'club', they receive a new
book every six months for the next three years. reductions in child pedestrian casualties; more carers had taught their child to hold hands when crossing the road; more carers had shown their child how to cross a road; more carers always got their child out of the car on the pavement side; children were more likely to be wearing conspicuous clothing if they went out after dark. Following the research, the materials and method of registration for the scheme are being revised. The materials will be made more relevant to today's children to remedy the current fall-off in use after book three. The registration process is also being assessed to improve the take-up of the scheme, which has been low apart from in Scotland where the whole series is free through funding from the Scottish Executive, and to target higher risk families more effectively. |
2.16 Basic road safety has been introduced into the PSHE (personal, social and health education) curriculum in key stages 1 and 2 (roughly age 5 to 11). DETR and the Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) will work together to help schools incorporate road safety effectively into the curriculum. In Scotland a strategy for road safety education in Scottish schools is being devised to guide teachers as to key learning outcomes within a core programme. Central to this strategy will be a partnership role with the Scottish Executive Education Department informed by the Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum. As in England and Wales, the strategy will also target children who are at higher risk of being injured in a road accident and will support appropriate intervention measures in these communities.
2.17 We know that there is no substitute for practical pedestrian training at the roadside. We need adult volunteers, parents and others. DETR supplies several training aids.
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Drumchapel project |
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Drumchapel is a housing estate in Glasgow with high unemployment, social deprivation and seven times the national average of child pedestrian accidents. DETR, and the former Strathclyde Regional Council and Drumchapel Community Council ran a road safety project in which parent volunteers taught young children (5-7 years old) basic pedestrian skills, following a programme devised at the Psychology Department of the University of Strathclyde. The children performed significantly better after training, and maintained the improvement over a two-month period after the training ended. Kerbcraft, the manual for road safety officers based on the project, is featured in the Step Forward video. |
2.18 With funding from the Department, RoSPA and road safety officers have developed National Guidelines for practical pedestrian training schemes. We are also evaluating computer-based, 'virtual' road safety training through a research project at Strathclyde University.
2.19 We have a database of teaching resources prepared by the British Institute for Traffic Education (BITER). The road safety linked database, ROSALIND, lists over 1,400 videos, books and other aids, including some designed for adults and children with special needs. It is being reviewed to make it more user friendly.
We must meet the need in congested urban areas where children are at relatively high risk of being killed or injured whilst out walking. Drumchapel showed the way. So we shall:
We plan to run demonstration projects in partnership with local authorities and voluntary groups to show what can be done and how to sustain pedestrian training schemes in the longer term.
2.21 As children grow up, they start travelling more by themselves, some by bicycle. Almost all of them have to change schools and will want to start making journeys to see friends who live further away. The number of children killed and seriously injured as cyclists and pedestrians peaks in early secondary school. They and their parents should be aware of the risks, as well as the benefits, of cycling.
2.22 We will target this age group with the help of parents, schools and the pupils themselves in order to prepare them for safer independent travel. We are looking for support from the private sector to get safety messages across.
2.23 Road safety needs to be reflected in the school curriculum. The new guidelines for teaching PSHE (personal, social and health education) at key stage 3 level (about 11 to 14) state that pupils should be taught to recognise and manage risk and make safer choices about healthy lifestyles, different environments and travel.
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'Smart Moves' is a CD-ROM produced for the Scottish Road Safety Campaign. Aimed at 10-14 year olds, in both urban and rural schools, it is a fully interactive package for pupils and teachers offering a colourful mix of computer graphics, text video, sound and animation. Four main characters take the user through topics such as route planning, dangerous behaviour, communication, conspicuity, hazards, peer group pressure, cycle safety, responsibility and decision making. It also provides signposts to other resources, teachers' notes and pupil worksheets, and suggests extension teaching activities. Scottish schools have found this useful. |
2.24 Around 30% of cycle casualties are children under 16, even though that age group accounts for only an estimated seventh of cycling mileage. A child cycling is estimated to be almost 50 times more likely to be injured than a child travelling in a car and 3 times more likely than a child walking.
2.25 About a third of children receive some kind of cycle training, usually when they are 9-10 years old. The best courses are held over a number of weeks, rather than a couple of days, and take children on the road so they learn to deal confidently and safely with real traffic conditions. Younger children (7-9) should be taught the basic skills required to handle a bike safely off-road.
2.26 The best courses for 9-10 year olds cover the safety benefits of wearing reflective and fluorescent clothing and a helmet, regular cycle maintenance, using lights and using a bell.
2.27 Practical cycle training is effective and all children should have the opportunity to take it. We are working with cycling groups and interested commercial organisations to make training more widely available.
2.28 Following a review of the Scottish Cycle Training Scheme, the Scottish Road Safety Campaign is revising the written training materials and has made a new training video. The new training pack will be launched early in 2000. It will be distributed to all Road Safety Units in Scotland and its use promoted in schools throughout Scotland.
2.29 We supply a Highway Code for Young Road Users to support training programmes and the Driving Standards Agency produce the Road Code. RoSPA also issues a Code of Good Practice for Practical Cycle Training which is being revised.
2.30 We are in partnership with Disney, using their Recess gang characters to promote safer cycling for children through a comic, poster and sticker which cover a wide range of cycle safety issues.
2.31 It is sometimes difficult to persuade fashion-conscious children to wear helmets, but the potential benefits are enormous. Half the casualties involve a head injury, and many are caused simply by the child falling off the bike. Cycle helmets offer significant protection in this type of accident. The chapter on Pedestrians, Cyclists and Horseriders deals with this in more detail.
2.32 DETR and the Department of Health are supporting a Bicycle Helmet Initiative Trust (BHIT) project to promote cycle helmet wearing amongst children and young people. In January 1999 BHIT received a grant from the National Lotteries Charities Board.
2.33 Well over a third of primary pupils and a fifth of secondary pupils now travel to school by car. As well as increasing congestion and local pollution, this has disadvantages for the children themselves.
2.34 Children are generally less fit nowadays. The Department of Health and the Department for Education and Employment have launched the National Healthy Schools Programme to address the growing health and safety problem.
2.35 Of course there are places where there is no alternative to driving, but many more children could walk, cycle or travel to school by bus. The Government wants schools to develop travel plans.
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School travel plans are packages of simple, practical
measures to tackle safety concerns and reduce
dependence on travelling by car to school.
DETR has funded safer routes to school schemes in Surrey, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire and Hertfordshire. We also supported the Sustrans Safe Routes to School demonstration project (including schools in York, Leeds, Colchester and Hampshire), and other school travel initiatives in West Sussex, Manchester, Warwickshire, Birmingham, Bedfordshire and London. |
2.36 The Government established the School Travel Advisory Group (STAG) in 1998 to find ways to encourage walking, cycling or taking the bus or train to school and to help schools to create safe and practical alternatives to the school run by parents. The role of STAG is to lead the dissemination of best practice and raise the profile of school travel issues; and to identify practical means of influencing behaviour and develop a coherent approach to school travel. STAG members include representatives of parents, teachers and governors bodies; public transport operators; business; road safety, school health and school transport experts; local authorities; and DETR; Department of Health; Department for Education and Employment; Scottish Executive, National Assembly for Wales and Northern Ireland Assembly.
2.37 STAG presented its first report in January 2000. Their recommendations, focusing on giving children greater travel choices and on improving safety on the journey to and from school, include:
2.38 The National Assembly for Wales is funding, this financial year, safer routes to schools schemes in 14 local authority areas in Wales at a cost of £800,000. The Assembly has recently announced that it is allocating a further £1.4 million towards this initiative for 2000-2001.
2.39 Scotland's road safety research programme recently included a study into the road user behaviour of teenagers and their attitudes to road safety. Research on safer routes to school and ensuing guidance was published in December 1999 and sent to all Scottish road safety officers and schools for reference when considering the development of such schemes. Also, in Scotland several local authorities have taken the initiative of employing staff who have a remit to address and support safer routes programmes.
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School Crossing Patrols |
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School crossing patrols - lollipop men and women - do a vital job in seeing children across the road at often the last and most vulnerable point of their school journey. DETR and the Scottish Executive want to make school crossing patrols more flexible. Both propose changes to the law to: extend the hours they can operate; and clarify that they can legally help adults and children below school age across the road. |
2.40 We encourage schools to fit road safety into the secondary school curriculum. It can provide a relevant context to teach decision making skills, language and listening skills and personal responsibility, and to help develop an awareness of the local environment. It is an opportunity to encourage positive attitudes to, for example, wearing seat belts and cycle helmets, and using pedestrian crossings. Later on, we can encourage responsible attitudes towards other road users, drinking and driving, and speeding.
2.41 The Driving Standards Agency (DSA) send driving examiners into schools to talk about learning to drive, the driving test and responsible attitudes to driving. Students and teachers also receive resource materials and are encouraged to undertake follow-up work to reinforce the messages. This has proved popular and effective, particularly in promoting the idea that passing the test is not the end of the learning process. We will expand the DSA programme. We have also commissioned road safety study material for vocational courses.
2.42 Increasingly, teenagers use electronic information and so must we. We will put more material on the DETR and Scottish Road Safety Campaign (SRSC) websites and we will explore the opportunities for further road safety education through the internet. As a result of a recently completed research project, the SRSC is reviewing its website to maximise its potential in schools.
2.43 We will publish Good Practice Guidelines for primary and secondary schools on how to develop effective road safety education both in the classroom and throughout the school. Guidance has already been issued to schools in Scotland.
2.44 The role of parents is vital in keeping their children safe, teaching them to be safer road users and providing a good example. We are developing tools to help parents to train their children to be safer road users.
2.45 We will continue to encourage road safety professionals to deliver high quality and well targeted effective road safety education, through advice, provision of resources, research and the promotion of National Vocational Qualifications in road safety.
2.46 Our research programme has helped us understand problems and develop effective counter-measures. But there are many important areas we need to investigate further, including:
3.1 Better driving skills and better driving behaviour would make an enormous difference to reducing the number of road casualties. Driving is an acquired skill, and a demanding one. As well as the right skills, drivers need the right attitude - towards speed, other road users, alcohol, drugs and fatigue. We want to make learning to drive more relevant to today's road conditions, and those of the future.
Summary of the strategy
3.2 We are introducing measures to:
3.3 Despite a 55% growth in traffic, we have made huge improvements in drivers' safety since the first casualty reduction targets were set in 1987. In 1998, 29% fewer car users were killed and seriously injured than the average for 1981-85. But the number of slight injuries has increased by 67%. Our task is to prevent the accident happening in the first place, as well as lessening its effects.
3.4 There is ample evidence that the way many new drivers learn is unsatisfactory. Too many people are taking the test ill-prepared. Fewer than half of drivers pass the test first time and the pass rate for the practical test has fallen over the last 10 years. A recent survey found that in around one in every ten tests, driving examiners had to intervene physically on safety grounds - by grabbing the handbrake or steering wheel, or using dual controls.
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Car practical test pass rate: 1990-1998 |
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3.5 Even after passing the test, young and newly qualified drivers have a poor safety record compared with older, more experienced drivers:
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We are determined to improve the safety record of novice drivers.
3.6 We shall encourage everyone to value safe driving as a life skill. Up to three million people regularly drive cars as part of their job. Research indicates that, mile-for-mile, company car drivers have accident rates 30-50% higher than for comparable private drivers.
3.7 We must also expect the highest standards of safety from the professional drivers of lorries and buses. Accident rates per mile are low, but when they happen, the consequences can be very serious.
3.8 A full driving licence has been increasingly seen, particularly by young men, as a rite of passage to adulthood: part of personal independence and mobility. The link with social responsibilities towards fellow citizens, particularly those who are more vulnerable, has not been emphasised enough.
We must take a better understanding about road safety into schools and colleges. A few years ago, we introduced an initiative called Drive, a video and teaching pack well targeted for a teenage audience. More recently, the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) developed an education package for 15-17 year olds about the driving test and the wider issues of safe driving. During 1999, driving examiners made some 800 presentations to schools and colleges, reaching 125,000 students. We shall expand this initiative in partnership with the police and road safety officers.
3.10 n the past, the agenda for training has tended to be the minimum needed to pass the driving test. But the test cannot examine everything that a new driver needs to know.
3.11 We need to foster a culture that values continuing driver education. Skimping on the learning process and attempting the test too soon is a false economy. In addition to the safety implications, learners have the inconvenience and expense of further tests.
3.12 Practically everyone who learns to drive a car has some professional tuition. Recent surveys suggest an average of 30 to 35 hours of lessons. But a third to a half take no extra practice. On average, novice drivers cover perhaps only 650 miles during supervised driving before passing the practical test. And some will have much less experience than that.
3.13 When learner drivers practise thoroughly they gain more experience of varying types of road and traffic conditions. They therefore make better test candidates and have a safer driving record. We want to encourage people to get more driving experience before they take their test, in the relative safety of a supervised environment.
3.14 The establishment of a more structured pre-test training requirement of itself implies a minimum period before taking the test. The Environment, Transport and Regional Affairs Select Committee, following their inquiry into the standards and training of young and newly qualified drivers, recommended that the Government should set a minimum period between drivers obtaining their provisional licence and first attempting a practical car driving test.
3.15 Our objective is to establish a more structured approach to pre-test learning which will ensure new drivers have a broader and more extensive experience of driving conditions before they take their test. We will be consulting on various measures to achieve the necessary level of driving experience.
3.16 Training programmes must teach the right range of skills. This is particularly important for those matters such as night and bad weather driving, where weaknesses can be fatal but where learners focusing on a test are likely to be inexperienced. We shall encourage learners to practise and gain sufficient experience to be safe before trying for a full licence.
3.17 We can learn from good educational practice, such as clearly establishing what is to be learned and the standards to be achieved. We have introduced a voluntary training logbook for learner car drivers, covering a modern driving syllabus relevant to today's conditions.
3.18 The logbook gives learner drivers a structured approach to learning to drive. It provides driving instructors with a framework for training, and gives trainees a checklist to monitor their progress and a guide for practising. As well as car control skills and manoeuvres, the logbook covers wider areas such as night driving, adverse weather, and environmental issues.
3.19 We designed the logbook in association with the driving instruction industry. DSA has made over 250,000 copies available.
3.20 We will evaluate the pilot scheme and develop suitable distribution and monitoring arrangements. Subject to that, we intend to make the use of logbooks mandatory.
3.21 Many novice drivers' accidents happen at night and it is possible to pass the driving test without ever having driven in the dark. New drivers should practise driving in the dark. Night driving should be one of the aspects of the mandatory logbook, undertaken prior to being able to take the test. We will consult on how to introduce such a scheme.
3.22 Training to a syllabus, supported by a logbook, can work for other types of learner too. We shall work in partnership with interested parties to develop logbooks for learner lorry and bus drivers and learner motorcyclists too.
3.23 The contribution of skilled and motivated driving instructors is central to delivering higher driving standards. This contribution extends beyond teaching learner drivers. Professional instructors have a role providing developmental training courses, both to private individuals and to companies, and providing remedial training for drivers who offend.
3.24 A learner car driver taking 35 hours of lessons is making a significant investment - probably over £500. They should be able to have confidence in both the technical competence and the conduct and business practices of the driving instructors they employ. In turn, hard-working professionals deserve the reassurance that their industry is being effectively and fairly supervised, and that standards are being maintained.
3.25 We want to raise the quality and expertise of all driving instructors to that of the best. Following consultation with the industry, we are updating the qualification arrangements for those entering the profession and the way qualified instructors are supervised. This includes switching to a screen-based theory test for instructors.
3.26 We have also launched longer-term research into the way car driving instructors are trained, tested and supervised. This will help establish what makes a good instructor and will look at continuing professional development. We will publish findings later this year.
3.27 Any changes will need to fit with our
broader plans to modernise driver training for the different
sectors. Currently there is an assortment of statutory and
non-statutory arrangements.
When the legislative opportunity arises we shall rationalise
the arrangements for training, testing and supervising car
driving instructors, with detailed provisions for the
different sectors.
3.28 We see empowering customers as key to encouraging intelligent use of driving instruction. Improvements in data-processing technology will allow the DSA to detail information about different types of training offered by registered instructors, plus data on the pass rates of their trainees. DSA could post the information on the internet allowing customers cheap and easy access. We believe openness will bring consumer benefits, and we favour making performance measurement and other consumer information available to the public. DSA will continue to work closely with the Data Protection Commissioner to address any privacy implications.
3.29 We want to ensure that the supervision arrangements provide a timely and effective remedy when the behaviour or standards of an instructor are unacceptable, whilst ensuring that enforcement action is fair - and seen as fair - by all parties. Current arrangements have been criticised because instructors guilty of serious misconduct can continue to instruct whilst an appeal concerning instructor registration is considered. On the other hand, some have expressed concern about the independence of the appeals process. We shall consult with the industry on proposals for suspending instructors when there is a risk to public safety, and putting appeals in the hands of an independent tribunal.
3.30 The format of our driving test has strengths. Candidates have to demonstrate their competence on the road. As traffic conditions become more demanding, the examiner's assessment takes place in that more demanding environment. But the driving test itself must also develop.
3.31 In 1996, a separate written theory test was introduced. The test allows for a balanced assessment of knowledge and understanding which was not possible by asking a few Highway Code questions at the end of a practical test.
3.32 The training agenda for the theory test is set by the scope of the question bank, which is reviewed annually. The number of possible questions for car candidates has increased from around 400 to over 800. We shall develop the theory test to promote our responsible driving agenda, such as:
We will upgrade the question bank and keep the number of questions per test paper under review.
We have switched the theory test to a screen-based system, as part of the Government's commitment to deliver public services electronically. The screen-based test will allow important service improvements. It offers:
3.34 Hazard perception skills are an important part of safe driving and we want to encourage new drivers to develop these skills quickly. The Transport Research Laboratory is researching a hazard perception test for DETR, and DSA has developed supporting training material. A screen-based theory test would allow the use of digitised video clips to help test topics such as motorway driving and hazard perception with moving images. We will introduce hazard perception testing as part of the theory test in 2002.
3.35 A joint research project by the Scottish Road Safety Campaign, Tayside Police and the University of Stirling is also exploring ways of enhancing hazard perception and reducing risk taking amongst young drivers.
3.36 We are also modernising the practical test. Since May 1999, car tests have included about ten minutes extra general driving, plus driving on higher-speed dual carriageways and rural roads where possible. Candidates for any type of practical test who commit more than 15 less serious driving faults now fail the test. We shall review the threshold of 15 less serious faults in the light of research and experience.
3.37 These changes will set higher standards, encouraging more thorough training - particularly looking ahead, scanning and anticipating the behaviour of other road users, demonstrated in a wider range of road and traffic conditions. We shall monitor the effects of the recent changes, and developments in the European Union, to see whether further adjustments to the test content would be sensible. At the same time as improving the driving test, we must also ensure that there is an effective system of monitoring and cracking down on unlicensed and uninsured driving. This is dealt with in Chapter 10, Better enforcement.
Novice driver plates
3.36 There have been calls for compulsory designation for
drivers in their first year of holding a full licence, along
the lines of the R plate in Northern Ireland, or the green P
or L plate used on a voluntary basis in Great Britain. In
Northern Ireland the R Driver Scheme also restricts speeds to
a maximum of 45 mph for the first year after passing the
driving test.
3.39 There are questions about the effectiveness and acceptability of a compulsory scheme. Voluntary take-up in Britain has been low. However, because of the continued high accident rate amongst novice drivers, we shall encourage greater take-up of the voluntary P-plate schemes and consult on introducing a compulsory probationary P-plate scheme in the longer term.
Advanced driving
3.40 A lot of people for personal or professional
reasons wish to promote their driving skills by taking
advanced driver training or an advanced driving test. Several
organisations offer these services. Until now there has been
no generally accepted industry standard. We believe there
could be a wider role for these services as part of
developing a safe driving culture - particularly if there was
recognition of the standards by employers and insurance
companies. DSA, in co-operation with interested parties -
such as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents
(RoSPA), the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM), fleet
managers and insurance interests - will be working to set a
benchmark for accreditation of advanced driving, and register
the organisations and specialist instructors providing the
training.
The older driver
3.41 As Britain's population ages, there will be an
increase in the proportion of older people who are driving on
the roads. Older people generally drive less than others and
this is reflected in their overall lower involvement in car
accidents. However, their injuries tend to be more serious
and their chance of surviving an accident is much lower.
3.42 Our aim is to find ways of helping older people to drive safely for as long as they are fit to do so, rather than taking measures to prevent them from driving at all. Devon County Council, the Saga Group and the British Institute of Traffic Education Research have been conducting important work in this area with refresher courses for older drivers. They use a variety of different methods, including observed drives with pre- and post-drive briefing sessions by trained driving instructors. Some courses have also included complementary non-driving activities such as aerobic exercise and physiotherapy. Participants ranged from the age of 55 and those who attended the courses found them both instructive and enjoyable.
3.43 We shall provide more information and advice, and encourage refresher courses for older drivers. Specifically, we shall issue a revised version of an advice leaflet within the next year.
|
*Killed or seriously injured |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Numbers of casualties in 1998 (GB) |
|||
|
|
KSI* |
Slight |
Total |
|
Lorry occupants |
560 |
2,884 |
3,444 |
|
Total casualties in accidents involving lorries |
3,268 |
15,430 |
18,698 |
|
Bus and coach occupants |
631 |
9,208 |
9,839 |
|
Total casualties in accidents involving buses and coaches |
1,678 |
14,555 |
16,233 |
3.44 We want training and testing for people who drive goods and passenger carrying vehicles to support safe, economically efficient and environmentally conscious1 driving practices. We have launched a two-phase programme to raise standards.
3.45 From April 1999, we have upgraded the theory test for learner lorry and bus drivers. We added new topics, including hazard awareness, fuel economy, noise and exhaust pollution. The question banks each now contain over 600 items, rather than the 200 they originally started with in January 1997. Test papers now have 35, rather than 25 questions. We have also introduced an experience requirement for anybody supervising a learner driver in a large vehicle.
3.46 We want to give drivers the right skills for driving the largest vehicles on our roads, and participating in two of our important economic sectors. This means ensuring that drivers are taught the right syllabus, as well as supervising the quality of instructors. DSA is working with the representative bodies in the road and passenger transport industry and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority to develop a scheme.
3.47 We will also build on the existing non-statutory scheme for lorry driving instructors, introducing accreditation of training centres plus a theory test as part of qualifying to be an instructor. DSA will promote a companion scheme for bus and coach driving instructors. This will help smooth the transitional arrangements when the statutory scheme is introduced.
When the opportunity arises we shall legislate to establish a statutory scheme for prescribing:
3.48 Many of the vehicles on our roads are being driven for work purposes. The range of vehicles is extensive, from buses and lorries, vans and cars, emergency service vehicles, specialist construction and agricultural vehicles, to mopeds and bicycles. Other workers are on the roads as pedestrians, such as highway maintenance workers, refuse collectors, motoring organisations including vehicle breakdown operatives, school crossing patrol workers and police officers. All of these people are exposed to risks from traffic. Their activities in turn expose others, notably vulnerable road users, to risks. The Health and Safety Commission (HSC) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have considered their role in the prevention of work-related road incidents. They concluded that they wanted to do more in this area of risk, but recognise that they need to work with others, to discover the best way to reduce work-related traffic risks.
3.49 We do not have reliable statistics about casualties connected with work-related traffic incidents. But company cars are more frequently involved in accidents and the number of people killed as a consequence of work activities, including driving, on our roads, could be significant. We want to consider how best to prevent these incidents by building upon the recent initiatives and campaigns aimed at improving the management of work-related journeys (for example, much has been done in this connection on lorry fleets). The HSC has therefore agreed with Ministers that an inter-agency task group is set up with the mandate to:
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The Highway Code |
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|---|---|
|
The Highway Code explains to all road users what rules to follow on the road and what constitutes safe behaviour. Yet most people consider it only as a tool to pass the driving test. We have had a thorough review of the Code, updating it and making it more relevant and accessible to all road users, not just learner drivers. |
|
|
The new edition was published in February 1999 and its overriding message is one of safety and considerate driving. There is a new section on vulnerable road users explaining drivers' responsibilities towards motorcyclists and horseriders as well as pedestrians and cyclists, especially children. There is also new advice for drivers on:
The Highway Code may be the best selling non-fiction book in the country but there is still a long way to go before we can be confident everybody who should be is familiar with its advice. DSA will look for more ways to promote the Code beyond learner drivers. |
|
3.50 The new group will work under an independent chairperson. The make-up of the new group will be drawn from:
3.51 As soon as they are able, the new group will launch a Discussion Document on preventing work-related road casualties. They will follow this with a major conference to debate the issues raised in the Discussion process. An important task for the group will be, we think, to consider the possible development and production of an Occupational Highway Code.
DSA is also working with employers, risk-managers, insurers and trainers to improve fleet driver safety, and will introduce a register of car driving instructors specialising in this area.
3.53 Improvements in driver training, testing and behaviour offer the prospect of significant reductions in deaths and injuries, less vehicle damage and a healthier environment for all. We have therefore decided to recast the role of DSA more broadly.
DSA will contribute to improvements in road safety through:
DSA's expanded remit will encompass:
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Mobile phones |
|---|
|
Mobile phones can be of great assistance to drivers and especially vulnerable road users - the disabled, the elderly and women - for their personal security or in the event of an accident or emergency. But they are also a real risk to road safety. Too many drivers are using their phones while on the move. While conversations in cars and listening to the radio are not necessarily distracting, use of hand-held sets reduces both control and attention. A review of international research found that even with hands-free phones, the distraction caused can have an impact on safety. We launched a publicity campaign in 1998 and reinforced that at the beginning of this year. We will continue to publicise the dangers. Drivers must by law have proper control of their vehicles at all times. If they use mobile phones they can be charged with:
It has been argued that using a mobile phone should be made a specific offence. At present we do not believe that it warrants legislation. The police believe they already have sufficient powers of prosecution. However, if we fail to persuade drivers not to use mobile phones while driving, we will review the case for taking specific legislation. |
4.1 To drive safely we need to be physically and mentally alert. Drink, drugs and tiredness contribute to driving accidents.
4.2 Over 16,000 casualties in 1998, including 460 deaths, were caused by accidents where at least one driver was over the legal alcohol limit. Even a very small amount of alcohol affects driving. Drugs too, both illegal and medicinal, can impair driving skills. And according to the latest research, fatigue may be the principal factor in around 10% of all accidents.
4.3 This chapter sets out the background to the drink, drugs and fatigue issues in turn, and describes the measures to reduce the number of accidents in which they are a factor.
4.4 The Government will:
4.5 Since the late 1970s, the number of people killed in drink-drive accidents each year has reduced by two-thirds. National and local anti drink-drive campaigns have helped to change public attitudes and people now have a much better understanding of the risks and consequences.
4.6 There is now a much greater chance that drink-drivers will be caught, since the police have increased breath testing substantially. In England and Wales alone, 815,000 breath tests were carried out in 1998 of which 95,000 were positive or refused. This is double the number carried out in 1988. The publicity will also have helped prevent some drivers from offending.
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Estimates of accidents involving illegal alcohol levels and the consequent casualties adjusted for under-reporting: 1988-1998 |
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|
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4.7 The graph above shows drink-drive accidents and casualties over the last 10 years. There was a sharp drop which levelled out in the early nineties, but numbers fell again in 1998.
4.8 Despite the reduction, one in seven road deaths is a result of a drink-drive related accident and there is no cause for complacency.
4.9 Despite recent progress, drink-driving still leads to too many deaths and serious injuries on our roads.
4.10 We want to make sure that the penalties for drinking and driving match the seriousness of the offence and act as a powerful deterrent. The Home Office is carrying out a review of road traffic penalties (see Chapter 10 - Better enforcement), which will examine the whole range of penalties for drink-drive offenders.
4.11 Special arrangements apply to 'high risk offenders' who:
They have to have a medical examination before they are allowed back on the road after being disqualified.
4.12 The Home Office review of penalties mentioned above will cover specifically an increase in the minimum disqualification period from one year to two years for first time high risk offenders. Other measures might include re-testing and further rehabilitation training.
4.13 Experimental rehabilitation courses for drink-drivers have been successful. People who attended them were almost three times less likely to commit a further drink-drive offence within three years than those who had not.
4.14 With effect from 1 January 2000, we have set up a nationwide scheme for courts to send drink-drivers on rehabilitation courses. These will be with the offenders' consent, and at their own expense. Successful completion of a course can reduce the period of disqualification by up to 25%.
4.15 There is overwhelming support for continuing high profile publicity campaigns and plenty of evidence that they are effective. There may be a case for running them at varying times of the year, rather than concentrating on Christmas and summer, and for refining the targeting.
4.16 At present the police can stop any driver but can carry out a breath test only if there has been a road traffic offence, an accident, or if they suspect that the driver has been drinking. We are looking at rationalising the law because the current practice is too restrictive. We want the police to have powers to breath-test people driving at locations where it is reasonable to assume an amount of drinking may have taken place. Intelligence-led policing is commonplace in dealing with other crime. We would expect public support and understanding from people stopped in such situations. All drivers involved in accidents are routinely breathalysed and there is now no stigma attached to being asked to take such a test. Procedures will be developed to ensure that the rights of the individual will be safeguarded.
4.17 At the moment, drivers who fail a roadside breath test have to be taken to a police station for a second test of the alcohol level in their body. Breath test results taken at the roadside are not admissible evidence in court.
4.18 Modern, roadside breath testers could provide admissible evidence. They could streamline the process and allow the police to test more suspects for the same level of resources. Primary legislation would be required.
The Home Office and the police are currently examining the procedural and legal implications of evidential roadside breath testing. The Government will then seek an early legislative opportunity to implement it.
4.19 In February 1998, the Government consulted on whether to lower the drink-drive limit from 80mg alcohol per 100ml blood, to 50mg (which is the limit in most other EU countries). Lowering the limit could save around 50 deaths and 250 serious injuries a year. A report on the consultation is available from the Department 1 .
4.20 The consultation document indicated that the Government was minded to lower the limit and the response was supportive from a range of organisations. However, there is a European context to this debate. The European Commission is currently reviewing its existing proposal for a Directive on the drink-drive limit. Though we do not yet have details, it is likely there will be continued pressure for a harmonised 50mg overall limit in Europe, and possibly even lower limits for specific categories of driver. If the UK acted unilaterally, we could end up having to readjust to new European regulations soon afterwards.
We therefore intend to deal with proposed reductions in the European context.
4.21 Driving whilst impaired by drugs is a serious criminal offence with penalties similar to those for drink-driving. The law does not make a distinction between illegal or misused drugs and over-the-counter or prescription drugs taken as directed by a medical practitioner. Drivers can be convicted if there is evidence that:
4.22 The causal relationships between drugs and driving accidents have not yet been established, and we do not know how much drug-driving is taking place. We will be finding out more through the research described below.
4.23 Studies have shown that compared with ten years ago, five times as many people killed in road accidents had a trace of an illegal drug in their body. Cannabis was by far the most common illegal substance found. However, whilst it is likely that shortly after use the active ingredient of cannabis impairs driving, traces of the drug can remain in the body for up to four weeks, long after it has ceased to have any effect. This can present difficulties for enforcement until we have further research findings.
4.24 Class A drugs are most likely to have an adverse effect on driving. According to interim survey results, they were found in 6% of cases (compared with 12% for cannabis). This was a small increase compared with 10 years ago.
4.25 In the studies of road accident fatalities referred to above, it was found that there had been no change in the incidence of medicinal drugs over the period. There is scope, nevertheless, to improve enforcement and to make people more aware of the risks of driving while their ability is affected by drugs.
4.26 We need to improve the way drug-driving is identified so that existing laws can be enforced more effectively.
4.27 At present there is no equipment for screening drivers for drugs at the roadside. Devices are being developed for roadside use. These devices will need to be able to detect the presence of Class A drugs and also the ingredient in cannabis that could impair driving.
4.28 Improved training will be introduced for police officers, in techniques for recognising and testing drivers who may have taken drugs, and in tests of co-ordination to help assess whether a driver's behaviour is impaired by drugs. These techniques have been successfully trialled by a number of police forces.
4.29 The police will be given the power to undertake tests of co-ordination and, when suitable equipment is available, to require suspected drivers to give samples for screening. This will need primary legislation but will create an effective regime to control drug-driving to operate alongside the drink-driving one.
4.30 Research is essentially in three strands: first, to identify the prevalence of drugs among drivers; second, to examine the nature of the effects which different drugs have on driving behaviour; and third, to devise techniques to address the problem by enforcing the law.
4.31 A report will be published later this year on a three-year survey of traces of drugs - illegal or medicinal - found in fatal accident victims. Another project, due to be completed in May 2000, examines evidential blood samples taken from drink-drive suspects for traces of drugs. On the second strand, the Government is investigating the effects of cannabis on driving, using a highly sophisticated driving simulator. For enforcement purposes, research and development will continue on the devices and techniques which police will need, as mentioned above. In Scotland, research has recently been commissioned by the Scottish Road Safety Campaign into the prevalence of recreational drugs and driving in Scotland. In addition to all this, through an extensive network of collaboration, we shall continue to monitor others' research worldwide.
4.32 Illegal drugs cause far wider social problems and their effect on road safety has to be seen in the context of wider Government policy on drugs. New powers proposed under the Crime and Public Protection Bill would make it a requirement for people charged with property crime, including the taking of a vehicle, to be drug tested. The Government will look for the most effective way of making these powers work in conjunction with powers under road traffic legislation.
We also need to raise the profile by targeted public information advertising to highlight the risks of driving under the influence of drugs.
4.33 In the UK, all medicines have an authorised Patient Information Leaflet explaining how the medicine acts, how it should be used and any side effects that might be experienced, including any influence on the ability to drive.
4.34 All medicines licensed in the UK are supplied with an authorised Patient Information Leaflet at the point of dispensing. Based on information integral to the granting of the medicine's licence, this explains how the medicine acts, how it should be used and any side effects that may be experienced. Where the medicine is likely to affect a patient's ability to drive, this information will appear in the patient information leaflet.
4.35 In 1999, the UK Medicines Control Agency (MCA) updated the driving warnings in the patient information provided with benzodiazepines. Recommendations have also been made to update the standard warnings for pharmacists in the British National Formulary.
4.36 The issue of a European-wide symbol on the labelling of medicines known to affect driving is currently being considered by the European Pharmaceutical Committee. The Committee, chaired by the European Commission, consists of representatives from all EU States and is consulted on any legislative changes.
4.37 The Committee concluded that they are in favour of introducing a harmonised symbol in all Member States for medicinal products that may affect an individual's ability to drive. A consensus on what symbol should be used, or how such a policy might be implemented, has not as yet been agreed.
Strengthening of penalties and enforcement in the drug field should reflect the changes foreshadowed above in relation to alcohol, including higher penalties and longer disqualification for high risk offenders, requirements to re-take the test following disqualification, targeted enforcement and extended rehabilitation options.
4.38 Most people know that it is not safe to drive when they are tired, but too often they carry on instead of taking a break. The full effect on casualty figures is only now becoming clear. For car drivers, fatigue may be the principal factor in as many as 10% of all accidents.
4.39 It can affect any driver, but people driving as part of their job may be more at risk. Research has found that people driving company cars fall asleep at the wheel more often, and are more likely to be involved in accidents than private car drivers.
4.40 People who drive occasionally at night are more likely to have problems than those who work a regular night shift and whose body clocks adjust.
4.41 The most consistent efforts to tackle driver fatigue have been by regulating the working hours of HGV drivers and bus and coach drivers, and setting minimum requirements for breaks and rest periods. European laws and tachographs have helped to control driving time.
4.42 Separate, and different, UK drivers' hours rules apply to certain HGV and bus operations that are exempt from the EU rules. The Government proposes to consult on the repeal of these rules in favour of the EU rules when we know the outcome of the current discussions in the EU of the proposed extension of the 48-hour Working Time Directive. This would impose working, as opposed to driving, time limits on mobile transport workers.
4.43 It would be difficult to enforce similar regulations if they applied to people driving smaller cars or vans as part of their work, as they do not have to have tachographs. But employers should be alert to the risk of fatigue and put simple systems in place to reduce that risk. Our proposals for improving work-related road safety are set out in Chapter 3, Safer drivers - training and testing.
DETR will continue its programme of research into fatigue and will work on improving ways of getting the message across through publicity.
Current research is looking at:
The research will be completed in autumn 2000.
4.45 If drivers were more aware of their limitations and accepted the need for rest, most fatigue-related accidents would not happen. We need to counteract the belief that it is something beyond their control. It is extremely rare for a driver to fall asleep without warning.
4.46 The new Highway Code advises drivers who realise they are becoming overtired to take a break, a nap and two cups of strong coffee.
1 A copy of a report on the drink-drive consultation is available from RS1, 2/13 Great Minster House, 76 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DR or on the DETR website at www.dft.gov.uk
5.1 The White Paper A New Deal for Transport: Better for Everyone made clear that simply building more and more new roads is not the answer to traffic growth. The emphasis is now on making best use of the existing highway network, giving priority to treating the places with the worst safety, congestion and environmental records. In England there is a new role here for the Highways Agency as well as new responsibilities and funding for local authorities. Key elements of the approach in England include:
The devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales are taking a similar approach. Hence safety is now 'mainstreamed' into all road engineering.
5.2 The Government will:
5.3 Most accidents happen on local roads. This is not surprising because it is where people live, work and shop; and where motor traffic, walkers and cyclists mix. Over the years, engineers have found better ways of catering for the mix. The basic road markings, lighting, signs and crossings which help responsible motorists drive safely are now often supplemented with traffic calming features such as humps and chicanes. These measures can be very effective at reducing road deaths and injuries, particularly for children, cyclists and pedestrians.
5.4 Well-designed, effective traffic calming measures can range from the relatively cheap to install to quite expensive, but these costs are minimal when compared with the cost of the accidents and casualties that have been prevented. It will nevertheless be some time before local authorities can treat all the roads prone to safety problems, let alone those where there is a perception of danger. Central Government issues guidance on traffic calming measures, listed in Traffic Advisory Leaflet 4/99 - Traffic Calming Bibliography, which is updated every year.
5.5 In Great Britain, local authorities now receive a single block allocation for all of their services, and resources for road safety schemes are allocated by authorities themselves according to locally determined priorities.
5.6 Motorways and trunk roads carry over 30% of traffic generally and over half of lorry traffic. But less than 10% of deaths and serious injuries happen there. Safety is 'mainstreamed' into all trunk road improvements and maintenance systems. In the next 10 years, technology will bring increasing benefits through controlling traffic, mainly to make the flow smoother and to avoid accidents. For example, incident detection and warning systems will be progressively introduced to the most congested sections of the motorway network. Such systems have been shown to reduce accidents by 18%, by giving drivers warning on variable message signs of the need to slow down in advance of queues, and also enabling emergency services to respond faster to incidents. Other systems work by reducing speed limits at the most congested periods, or by controlling the entry of traffic onto motorways using traffic lights on slip roads. Experience of these systems from the UK and abroad suggests that they make traffic flow smoother and so reduce accidents. We shall continue to pilot innovative approaches using new technology and, provided the results are successful, use such systems more widely.
5.7 DETR and the Scottish Executive issue planning guidance to local authorities. The Urban Task Force report Towards an Urban Renaissance also draws attention to the importance of the planning system in allowing the creation of sustainable movement patterns.
5.8 The professionals' approach to safety planning is changing. The old emphasis on c
