So far this year 126 people have died on London roads, an increase of 22 from this time in 2018, today Caroline Russell AM demanded action from the Mayor to better protect Londoners in 2020.
Outer London saw 83 road deaths this year, the majority of all road deaths in London, Caroline urged the Mayor to reduce speed limits beyond central London.
Currently TfL only proposes limited ‘reductions’ in speed – and only on small sections of road, rather than a large-scale roll out of 20 mph speed limits as he has done in central London.
Caroline Russell says:
It’s absolutely shocking that so many people are still dying on our roads. Every death and serious injury is heart-breaking and the loss and harm caused by each one ripples out to friends, family and communities.
Despite the strong words of the Mayor’s Vision Zero there has not been a reduction in deaths on London’s roads. The Mayor set a target of a 65 per cent reduction in deaths and serious injury by 2022, he has left TfL with just two years to get serious about the dangers we face making our everyday journeys.
The Mayor could act tomorrow to start lowering speeds in outer London. Given the continuing death toll on our roads we must see urgent action in the new year.
Caroline also praised the work of the Sarah Hope Line, TfL’s support service for people affected by traumatic incidents on our transport network, but called on the Mayor to extend the support.
She echoed concerns that the service is focused mainly on people affected by deaths and serious injuries on public transport, while people affected by road collisions are not being directed to this specialist support.
Sarah Hope, a road safety campaigner who worked with TfL to found the Sarah Hope Line after her mother died and two-year-old daughter lost a leg having been hit by a bus on London’s roads in 2007, was in the audience and supports Caroline’s call.
Sarah Hope, says:
I’m really proud of the work the Sarah Hope Line has done, and the support it has given Londoners. I was delighted to see that Caroline Russell supports my aim for Transport for London to ensure every Londoner affected by collisions gets the support they need.
People need kindness and support after facing trauma, the Sarah Hope Line is there to offer that. Access to the right counselling is really important, and we also provide support on funeral and travel expenses. Practical support can make such a difference after the life changing experience of a collision on London’s roads.
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Notes to editors
UPDATE:
TfL have provided updated figures. As of today (19/12/2019), their total number of road deaths caused by a collision in London is 126 and 83 of those were in outer London. The increase in deaths from 2018 to 2019 is still 22 more lives lost, and every one of these is a tragedy.
The figure used in the video of 134 includes a small number of deaths that investigators have concluded are not the result of a collision.
[1] Source of data – TfL Provisional Road Fatalities 2019 up to November 2019 https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/road-safety and 2 Met Police reports of fatal collisions in December 2019 http://news.met.police.uk/latest_news/tag/fatal-collision.
[2] Vision Zero Strategy - http://content.tfl.gov.uk/vision-zero-action-plan.pdf - 1.5 road danger reduction targets – p23
[3] More information about the Sarah Hope Line: https://tfl.gov.uk/campaign/incident-support-service
How the Sarah Hope Line can help you:
If you have been involved in, or affected by, a life-changing incident on the TfL network you can contact The Sarah Hope Line in full confidentiality.
They have a dedicated team on hand to make sure that you get the help you deserve, and work in partnership with organisations that can provide further specialised support.
How to contact the Sarah Hope Line:
You can call The Sarah Hope Line on 0343 222 5678, Monday-Friday 08:00-18:00 (check TfL call charges). A voicemail service operates outside of these times.
You can also reach them by email at [email protected].