Increase of 44 per cent in rural road deaths 'deeply alarming', says Caithness campaigner
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THE rise of 44 per cent in the number of deaths on rural roads has been described as "deeply alarming" by a Caithness campaigner.
Iain Gregory, a retired senior police and co-founder of Caithness Roads Recovery, spoke out after a report revealed that 127 people lost their lives on rural roads in Scotland in 2022 – over 200 per cent more than the 42 who died on urban roads and a 44 per cent increase on 2021
Across Britain, rural road deaths increased 14 per cent to four-year high of 1017 last year with vulnerable road users at "disproportionately high risk of losing their lives," according to the report by the insurance company, NFU Mutual which has outlined plans for a Code for Countryside Roads in a bid to try and make rural roads safer. The announcement was made just days after a Caithness man was killed in an accident on the B876 road at Kirk.
Mr Gregory is concerned about the rise in fatalities on rural roads and said each one is "a personal and family tragedy."
"The figures are deeply alarming. I would hope the Highland Council, our MSPs and MP will take the Code into account when they are setting policy, and developing and improving our roads. There is a great need for substantial investment in road infrastructure and road safety factors."
Asked how the code could be enforced at a time of police budget cutbacks, Mr Gregory said: "We can all play a part. All road users, including drivers, motor cyclists, HGVs, agricultural vehicles and pedestrians should show consideration and understanding to each other. It needs to be voluntary and everyone needs to take it on board."
He added: "The number of deaths on rural roads is not sustainable and they have to come down. There are no easy answers but we need a holistic approach with everyone working together to reduce these figures. There is a tendency for people to blame speed but there are many factors which lead to road accidents, including blind corners, narrow roads, impatient drivers and weather conditions. Speed is not necessarily the problem. It is the misuse of speed that is the problem. You don't have to be in a hurry. You will get there if you take it easy."
Mr Gregory highlighted the number of women who have to go from all over Caithness to Inverness to give birth and have to travel on "totally inadequate and badly maintained roads."
Thurso and Northwest Caithness Highland councillor, Matthew Reiss, pointed out the speed limits are often higher on rural roads which can have a lower volume of traffic. He said there is no dedicated traffic police cover in the far north – the nearest unit being 100 miles away in Dingwall.
Councillor Reiss explained there is a small traffic unit in Fort William, 60 miles from Inverness but there is nothing in Caithness which is double the distance from the Highland capital.
"I asked Police Scotland to consider having a small unit based in the county as it could cover a lot of the North Coast 500 route, be involved in education in schools and crucially act as a deterrent to some traffic offences and back up the hard-pressed local officers but it was turned down by the hierarchy in the central belt," he said.
Councillor Reiss also expressed concern about the reduction in operational police officers which he described as "completely unforgivable."
He said the Driving Ambition presentation which was given to senior pupils at Wick and Thurso High schools was "extremely effective" for young people about to embark on their driving careers. "It was very hard-hitting and a beneficial thing to do, "he added.
The report shows that one in seven people had been in an accident on a rural road, and one in five admitted to being uncomfortable driving on rural roads. Among respondents’ top concerns about rural road safety were blind corners (63 per cent), narrow roads (53 per cent), impatient drivers (50 per cent) and people breaking the speed limit (47 per cent).
It found that in Britain, accidents on rural roads are around four times more likely to result in a fatality. In 2022, an average of one in every 31 accidents (1017 of 31,395) on rural roads resulted in a death, compared to one in every 120 (593 of 71,151) on urban ones.
The vulnerable groups included, motorcyclists, pedestrians and horses and their riders.
Nick Turner, chief executive of NFU Mutual, said: "Every road death is one too many, and we believe serious conversations need to happen to make rural roads safer for everyone. We all need to work together to ensure we keep our countryside as safe as it can be."
He added: "We invite members of the public and experts to get in touch with us to feed into the Code for Countryside Roads and hope the document, once published, will help steer a course towards safer rural roads for all road users."
Members of the public can contact NFU Mutual to provide their views on a Code for Countryside Roads at www.nfumutual.co.uk/campaigns/rural-road-safety/rural-road-safety-consultation/
