our vision.

our goal.

Vision Zero’s ambition is to cut road deaths and serious injuries to zero by 2040 – and to reduce current numbers by 50% by 2030.

In 2021, 47 people were killed and 647 were seriously injured on the roads of Devon and Cornwall. That number MUST come down. While the region is one of the safest when it comes to road safety, we believe that any death or serious injury is too many.

Projects in other countries have shown how a Vision Zero commitment to road safety can dramatically reduce the number of people killed.
In 2019, Helsinki in Finland recorded no pedestrian deaths for the first time since records began in 1960, down from an average of 20-30 a year in the 1990s. In Oslo in Norway, there were also no pedestrian or cyclist deaths in the city during 2019 and no children under 16 died in traffic crashes in the entire country.

So... how can we achieve our ambitious goal?

our report.

We commissioned transport safety specialists Agilysis to compile a detailed report on road safety in Devon and Cornwall. The report, which can be read in full here, highlighted six groups of road users who are most vulnerable to death and serious injury:

motorcyclists

cyclists

older drivers

business drivers

young drivers

horse riders

pedestrians

more about at-risk road users

The UK has some of the safest roads in the world, but the effects of every death or serious injury on our roads are devastating, for the bereaved, for families and loved ones, and for those who support the seriously injured, some of whom may have long-term life-changing injuries.

possible improvements

An additional two areas were also identified where improvements could lead to fewer deaths and serious injuries. They are:

Post-crash care
Route-based interventions

Vision Zero aims to target each of these at-risk groups by identifying specific dangers to them and seeing how they can be addressed.
Each of the eight themes above has a lead member who is an expert in their field and is supported by an Operational Delivery Group which can help bring their lifesaving ideas to reality.

You can read the full Vision Zero road safety strategy here.

SOUTH WEST