A brand new security marketing campaign has been launched as evaluation reveals there are 70% extra deaths on rural roads than city highways.
Main rural insurer NFU Mutual has partnered with the 4 UK farming unions, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) Farm Security Basis, the British Horse Society and the Older Drivers Discussion board to create the Code for Countryside Roads which may be downloaded and printed for everybody to make use of.
Collisions on rural roads are round 4 occasions extra prone to end in a fatality, in accordance with the most recent Division for Transport (DfT) figures.
In 2023, a mean of 1 in each 32 collisions (969 of 31,183) on rural highways resulted in a demise, in comparison with one in each 122 (571 of 69,706) on city roads.
A survey performed in November by NFU Mutual discovered that 13% of individuals had been in a collision on a rural highway, rising to virtually one in 5 (19%) for those who reside within the countryside. This compares to at least one in 10 individuals residing in city areas who’ve been concerned in a collision on a rural highway.
A couple of fifth of respondents (21%) admitted to being uncomfortable travelling on rural roads, with a 3rd of individuals with out a automobile saying they’re uncomfortable on countryside roads.
Greater than half of respondents stated one in all their greatest concern on the subject of rural highway security was blind corners (56%) and slim roads (51%), whereas highway high quality (48%), driver impatience (45%) and folks breaking the velocity restrict (42%) have been additionally excessive on the checklist.
Round a 3rd (32%) have been anxious about navigating susceptible highway customers and 1 / 4 (24%) have been involved about coping with agricultural site visitors.
“Rural roads are the arteries of our countryside, very important to the agricultural economic system and serving to attach us all to the advantages of the good open air,” stated Nick Turner, Chief Govt of NFU Mutual.
“Each highway demise is an avoidable tragedy, and each highway consumer has a accountability to guard themselves and others, however the disparity in security between city and rural roads and the upper threat shouldered by susceptible highway customers means that extra may be completed.
“That’s the reason NFU Mutual has been campaigning for a number of years to enhance rural highway security by elevating consciousness of the dangers inherent to countryside roads, and why we’re proud to publish a Code for Countryside Roads to offer a transparent information on how individuals ought to use rural roads.”
