NFU Mutual has announced plans to create a Code for Countryside Roads, to bring together ‘expert knowledge and advice to make rural roads safer for everyone’.
Photo by Felix Mittermeier
The code forms part of the organisation’s 2023 Rural Road Safety report.
The report found that, in 2022, fatalities on roads rose back up to pre-pandemic levels with rural road deaths accounting for almost two thirds of all fatalities on roads – a total of 1,017.
Despite more incidents happening in urban areas, the fatality rate on rural roads is ‘strikingly higher’ – at one for every 31 collisions, compared to one for every 120 on urban roads.
When respondents to a survey, featured in the report, were asked what their biggest rural road safety concerns were:
- 25% identified loose livestock or animals.
- 25% found vehicles, or slow-moving traffic were a concern.
- 28% cited mud and debris.
- 50% cited the impatience of drivers.
Blind corners, narrow or winding roads, and poor road quality topped the list of concerns overall.
The report also identified an upward trend in fatalities involving horses and their riders, finding them to be ‘significantly at risk on rural roads’.
According to the latest figures from the BHS (British Horse Society), 69 horses were killed on the roads and 139 riders were injured in 2022, a 21% increase from 2021.
NFU Mutual says its new code will include feedback and advice from expert groups with the overall aim of ‘providing a clear guide on how people should use the roads’.
Nick Turner, NFU Mutual chief executive, said: “Rural roads are not only the arteries of the rural economy, but also the gateway to our countryside and a source of enjoyment for millions.
“Sadly, our analysis shows that, after a few years of decreasing fatalities, rural roads are becoming more deadly again.
“Over 1,000 people lost their lives on rural roads last year, with thousands more injured. Every road death is one too many, and we believe serious conversations need to happen to make rural roads safer for everyone.”
