Clearer leadership and better technologies could cut road deaths in Wales - says committee report

The number of deaths on Welsh roads could be cut according to a report from the National Assembly for Wales’s Enterprise and Learning Committee published today (September 23).

The Committee recommends greater co-operation between the Welsh Government, local authorities, emergency services and other organisations to drive down average speeds on Wales’s road network.

The report calls on the Welsh Government to consider innovative casualty reduction methods, such as less ‘roadside clutter’ - a Swedish idea based on fewer road signs meaning less driver distraction and fewer accidents.

It also recommends that the Government should encourage local authorities to enforce 20mph zones in busy town centres and residential areas. A similar scheme in Hull has seen overall injuries fall by 60 per cent.

Further investment in - and greater use of - mobile camera technology on the trunk road network in Wales is another suggestion of the report.  

“We don’t believe that throwing speeding tickets around like confetti would prevent deaths in road accidents from happening ever again, but we do believe enforcement along with education and closer co-operation is the route to safer roads in Wales,” said Committee Chair Gareth Jones AM.

“While the UK may have, statistically, the safest roads in Europe we should not rest on our laurels. We believe the Welsh Government should grab the opportunity to affect real change on our road network and show we can lead the way in reducing road accidents and vehicle emissions at the same time,”

The report also states that Wales should set its own targets for road traffic safety which take into account the special circumstances of the Welsh road network.