How many people die on roads compared with other forms of transport?
Every day, 8 people die on British roads.
In 2007 (the latest year for which statistics are available) 2,946 people were killed on Britain’s roads [1].
For every death, ten times as many people suffer serious injury. A further 27,774 people were seriously injured in road crashes in 2007.
That’s 77 people every day suffering injuries including brain damage, paralysis, loss of limbs, severe burning or facial disfigurement - injuries that change lives forever.
Another 217,060 people in 2007 sustained minor injuries [1].
Deaths and serious injuries on roads are violent and sudden, ripping apart families and devastating communities. They result in serious mental conditions such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and depression as well as devastating grief and social consequences such as loss of work.
Many deaths on roads are tragically young. In 2007, nearly one in 3 deaths (891) were young people and children under the age of 25. [11]
1 in 200 people die on roads [2]. You are far more likely to be killed while crossing the road than in a plane crash. If the same number of people were killed in air crashes - a jumbo jet every fortnight - there would be a national outcry. But deaths on the road are treated, by many, as inevitable. Yet they are preventable tragedies with real causes.
You are 10,000 times more likely to die or be injured in a car journey than on a plane (when comparing casualty rates per billion km travelled in 2006 - latest figures available) [6].
Use the below links to access further information on the extent and consequences of road deaths and injuries
