When it comes to road traffic accidents in Newcastle, you may be surprised to learn our humble region actually has the lowest rate of fatal driving accidents and as such, is the safest in the country. Despite danger spots like the Blue House Roundabout and Haddricks Mill being some of the most dangerous in the country, drivers in our region are actually far less likely to be killed than drivers in other areas.
The department for transport issues a yearly report on road causalities. This year’s report was for reported road causalities in 2016. However, minor casualties are often not reported to police, whereas almost all fatalities are. When looking specifically at fatalities, the North East is the safest region. Despite the fact that car traffic is still on the rise and almost 5 people are killed on average per day on the roads, our region managed to experience a 10% reduction in road fatalities compared to 2015, with 56 people sadly killed.
The only other region that had a better reduction in fatal injury was London, which dropped by 15% but still experienced 116 total deaths in 2016.
However, the North East is also the least populated region in all of England – which is the most probable explanation for our low fatality rate. The actual cause of accidents is too varied to give statistics for, but we can of course explore one of the issues that is most directly linked to road deaths, drink driving.
Drink Driving
In the latest figures available (2015), drink driving caused 180 deaths in the UK and a total of 5,730 accidents. Of these accidents, data was rounded to the nearest ten. The North East had the least accidents that were marked as ‘serious’ at 40, compared to a high of 180 in the South East. However, when it came to accidents involving fatalities, our region was tied with the South West and East Midlands who all had 10 or under.
The North East is still a clear winner when you consider total drink driving accidents. Our region has far less at 230 total accidents – which is just 4% of the total number. The closest competitor was London, which accounts for 7% of all drink driving accidents in the UK. The South East is by far the most dangerous drink driving region, accounting for a full 18% of total drink driving accidents.
Are we really safer?
In summary, it can be argued that drivers, irrespective of population density, are statistically less likely to be involved in fatal road traffic accidents in the North East, and also less likely to be involved in a drink driving accident. Even if this is because there are less drivers in our region, it is still welcome news.
Unfortunately, statistical safety is no comfort if you are involved in a collision. Instead, you’ll need expert advice and guidance to ensure you get the compensation you deserve. At Beecham Peacock, we can help you if you’ve been in a road traffic accident in Newcastle or the North East.
