Road safety in North Lanarkshire 'improving'

Date: 11/3/2011

Roads in North Lanarkshire are significantly safer than they were one decade ago, according to new figures.

The local council has revealed that the region has met the national targets set in the UK for road safety and has also seen a reduction in the number of fatalities and serious casualties.

Indeed, North Lanarkshire Council reveals that in the last ten years, such incidents have declined by 74 per cent, according to figures compiled by Strathclyde Police.

While in 1999 this figure stood at 276, last year it had fallen to 72, and during the same period overall cases of road accident-related injury within the county fell by 42 per cent from 1,313 to 759.

Councillor James Coyle, Convener of Planning and Transportation, said: "[The figures are] thanks to the public in North Lanarkshire, who are listening to the messages about reducing their speed, driving with care and following road safety guidance for pedestrians."

Last month, Strathclyde Police and other forces across Scotland launched the Day of Action campaign, which focussed on drivers using their mobile phones while behind the wheel.

Posted by Sarah Bailey