Road deaths fall in 2009

The number of people killed on UK roads fell in 2009, compared with the previous year.

Although 2222 people still died on UK roads last year, that's a 12% drop from the previous year's figures, according to statistics revealed by the Department for Transport (DfT) today.

In all, there were a little more than 222,000 road casualties in 2009, which is a 4% fall compared with the previous year's figures.

The DfT also reported that:

• Child casualties fell by 6%. Even though 81 children died on our roads, that's a third less than in 2008;

• There were 13% fewer pedestrian deaths in 2009, compared with 2008 500 pedestrians died last year;

• The number of cyclists killed fell 10%, but the number of those seriously injured rose 6%.

• 472 motorcyclists died, a drop of 4%. There were 20,703 casualties among motorcyclists, a drop of 4%.

While the fall in the number of road deaths will be welcomed, road safety charity Brake has warned that the Government's impending spending cuts, due to be outlined in October, could contribute to a rise in casualties in the coming years.

Ellen Booth, campaigns officer for Brake, said: 'Traffic is the biggest killer of young people, and dangerous behaviour on roads causes thousands of horrific deaths and injuries of all ages every year in the UK. By targeting road safety, the Government has shown it has no concern for the families of the future carnage we may see because of this irresponsible and short-sighted cut of a vital life-saving service.'

• The DfT has launched a new website, which aims to allow members of the public to perform their own analysis of reported road accident statistics. Visit http://reports.roadcasualtiesonline.org.uk.