Labour has been urged to introduce major changes to its road strategy in a bid to tackle road fatalities and injuries, which can be prevented across the UK.
The Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS) released a comprehensive report on Monday, demanding immediate action to reverse a decade of minimal improvement in road casualty figures.
The charity's proposals centre on implementing widespread 20mph speed limits in urban areas and adopting the internationally recognised Safe System approach to road design.
PACTS argues that the UK risks losing its position as a global leader in road safety without fundamental reforms to current policy.
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The report warned that every road death is preventable and called for a cross-departmental strategy to address what it describes as an ongoing public health crisis affecting thousands of families annually.
The need for action follows the annual report from the Department for Transport, which found that roads claimed 1,602 lives in 2024, with an additional 30,000 people suffering serious injuries.
Road safety improvements have largely stalled since 2010, when the annual number of deaths fell below 1,850, down from over 5,000 in 1987. The 2024 death toll represents minimal change from a decade earlier, marking what PACTS describes as a flatlined trend in casualty reduction.
The report highlighted that preventable collisions burden the NHS with an estimated £3billion in medical and ambulance costs.
The PACTS report urged the Government to introduce more 20mph speed limits across the UK
| PARoad trauma was also found to create unplanned operations that delay scheduled surgeries and place long-term demands on mental health services.
PACTS recommended establishing a high-level board comprising senior officials from the Department for Transport, the Ministry of Housing, the Department of Health, the Home Office and the Department for Business.
The organisation also called for clear, measurable targets backed by Safety Performance Indicators to monitor progress. Their framework demanded embedding Safe System principles across all transport policies, from planning guidance to vehicle standards and driver education.
PACTS specifically advocated for speed limits aligned with human survivability, beginning with functional road classification and extending to widespread adoption of 20mph limits in urban areas.
The Department for Transport report found that 1,602 road fatalities occurred last year
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Wales has already implemented default 20mph limits on urban roads, resulting in an 11.8 per cent decrease in road collisions during the four quarters following the policy's introduction.
Scotland's Vision Zero strategy aims to achieve zero road deaths by 2050, with interim goals of halving the number of people killed and seriously injured by 2030.
Transport for London's similar approach has achieved a 50 per cent reduction in casualties within Low Traffic Neighbourhoods.
Meanwhile, Edinburgh and Belfast successfully gained public support for 20mph zones through "incremental implementation" near schools and residential areas.
In Waltham Forest's LTNs, walking and cycling have become three to four times safer since the measures were introduced.
Labour confirmed that it would be moving forward with a new road safety strategy by the end of the year | GETTYAndy MacNae, Labour MP for Rossendale and Darwen and PACTS President, stated: "The safety of our roads affects us all. A collision can not only devastate the lives of those directly involved, but also of families and friends, co-workers and neighbours.
"With over 30,000 people killed or seriously injured in collisions each year, we cannot afford to ignore this."
"Every road death is preventable, and each injury is avoidable," the report concludes.
PACTS has now urged the Government to adopt their recommendations, enabling policymakers, local authorities and industry partners to create safer roads for everyone.