Scottish Government

CHAPTER TWO: ACCIDENTS ON SCOTTISH RURAL ROADS

Size and nature of problem

2.1 In 2003, non-built-up roads accounted for 42% of all casualties in Scotland. However, they accounted for 74% of fatalities and 52% of killed and seriously injured combined (Scottish Executive, 2004a).

2.2 Compared with 1994-98, the fall in the total number of casualties has been greater for built-up roads (20%) than elsewhere (10%), and the difference between the two types of road is even greater for the numbers killed i.e. down by 24% for built-up roads compared with 7% elsewhere.

2.3 However, over the years, some traffic will have been transferred away from built-up roads by the opening of city and town bypasses, and by the construction of non-built up roads with higher average traffic volumes. Therefore, these figures do not necessarily provide an accurate measure of the comparative change in the road safety performance of 'built-up' and 'non-built up' roads.

Road type

2.4 Table 2.1 shows separate accident figures for trunk roads and for local authority roads. Trunk roads accounted for around one third of the total numbers of accidents on non built-up roads in 2003: 38% of fatal accidents, 33% of the total of fatal and serious accidents, and 34% of all accidents.

Table 2.1 - Accidents on Scottish non built-up roads by road type and severity, 2003 (Scottish Executive, 2004a)

2.5 Because of current differences between definitions of rural and non built-up roads in Scottish statistics, it is not possible to directly compare traffic estimates for different roads with accident and casualty statistics. However, Table 2.2 shows accident rates by severity and road class for rural roads. It can be seen that in terms of accident rates, B roads are by far the most dangerous followed by local A roads. Trunk A roads and Motorways have the lowest accident rates for all severities in non built-up areas.

Table 2.2 - Accident rates (accidents per 100 million vehicle km) by severity and road class for non built-up roads (Scottish Executive, 2004a)

Mode of transport

2.6 Figure 2.1 shows the proportions of fatalities on non built-up roads by mode of transport. It can be seen that car occupants account for the majority of fatalities (67%) followed by motorcyclists (16%) and pedestrians (8%). Other road users account for the remaining 9% of fatalities.

Figure 2.1 - Proportions of non built-up fatalities by mode of transport, 2003 (Scottish Executive, 2004a)

2.7 Table 2.3 shows the numbers of killed and seriously injured casualties on non built-up roads by mode of transport. It can be seen that car occupants again account for the majority of casualties (70%), followed by motorcyclists (15%) and goods vehicle occupants (5%). The table also shows that high proportions of KSI casualties for goods vehicle occupants (73%), car occupants (70%) and motorcyclists (62%) occur on non built-up roads.

Table 2.3 - Killed and seriously injured casualties by mode of transport, 2003 (Scottish Executive, 2004a)