Rise in road deaths during 2022 confirmed

Final figures show there were 1,711 road deaths in Great Britain during 2022, a year-on-year rise of 10%. The stats were published today (28 September) by the DfT, who says the number of casualties ‘have begun to normalise’ after the Covid-impacted years of 2020 and 2021. In comparison to 2019, the last year unaffected by the pandemic, the 2022 fatality figure is down 2%.

Despite this, the RAC says the figures are “a chilling reminder that there remains so much work to do be done to improve road safety in the UK”.

As has been widely reported over the last few years, casualty statistics have been heavily impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, with lockdown periods leading to a reduction in traffic on the roads. As 2021 had a lockdown, it is perhaps no surprise that 2022 has seen an increase in not only fatalities, but also KSIs and the total number of casualties.

At 29,742, the number of KSIs rose by 8%, while the overall casualty figure increased by 6% to 135,480. Both of the 2022 figures are however lower than 2019 – KSIs are down by 3% and casualties of all severities by 12%. In 2022, 76% of fatalities and 62% of casualties of all severities were male.