Our World in Data has a useful analysis of how the UK has some of the safest roads on the planet.
It wasn’t always this way. Road deaths per billion miles driven have plummeted since the 1950s.
The first big infrastructure change they made since the 1950s was investment in motorways. Globally, motorways have far lower fatalities due to lesser head-on collisions, no pedestrians, etc.
The second big change was roundabouts. Roundabouts are just way safer than traffic lights and stop signs because there are just fewer collision opportunities and those are mostly slower and sideways vs. head on.
Third, strict enforcement of penalties for drunken driving.
And, finally, strict speed limits have drastically reduced the number of children dying on British roads. I saw this first-hand in London where the speed limit is 20 miles per hour and it is strictly observed.
Overall, these statistics are impressive. There’s a lot everyone can learn from the British transport authority.
