Mid and West Wales Assembly Member, Rebecca Evans, has highlighted recent figures that reveal drivers aged between 17 and 19 are involved in almost one in eight of all driver injuries and deaths in the UK, with the Dyfed-Powys area having the worst record.
The new Transport Research Laboratory (TRL) study, commissioned by the RAC Foundation, has shown the 17 to 19 age group is involved in nearly 12% of all driver injuries and deaths in the UK – and the Dyfed-Powys Police Force area more than half as high again at 18.2%, giving it the highest casualty rate of anywhere in the UK.
Raising road safety during First Minister’s Question Time, Mrs Evans said:
“Following the news that teenage drivers are more likely to be killed or injured on Welsh roads than anywhere else in the UK, and with Dyfed Powys having highest casualty rate, how is the Welsh Government working with partners to ensure that young drivers are well equipped to handle vehicles on rural roads where accidents are at their most common and severe?”
The First Minister responded to Mrs Evans’ comments by saying:
“Our ‘Road Safety Framework for Wales’ sets out the measures that we are taking to improve road safety, and, of course, to reduce the number of people who are killed and seriously injured on Welsh roads.
“We have established an all-Wales young driver working group to identify the approaches that are needed to reduce the number of young casualties on Welsh roads. In addition, of course, we provide funding for young people—this year, for over 2,000—to receive Pass Plus Cymru training. This provides additional, practical and theoretical training post driving test, to improve skills and driving behaviour, and is a factor when calculating insurance premiums for young people as well. Although, of course, the issue of driving standards is not devolved, nevertheless, we take seriously the issue of ensuring that road safety figures continue to follow the right direction.”
The TRL research shows that one in five young drivers will have an accident within six months of passing their test.
The TRL research also reveals that young drivers also run the greatest risk of becoming a road casualty in rural areas, due to the lower quality of the roads and generally more challenging driving conditions.
Professor Stephen Glaister, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Whichever way you cut it young drivers pose a significant and disproportionate risk to themselves and to others and it is in rural areas where the casualty rate is highest.”
