News
Government launches Road Safety Strategy
A plan to reduce road-related deaths by 65% by 2035
Ryan Barham
Last updated: 07/01/2026
Ryan Barham
Last updated: 07/01/2026
Approximately 4 people die on Britain’s roads every day, with thousands more getting seriously injured.
Britain has also slipped from third to fourth in the European road safety rankings, with 22 European countries making more progress in reducing road fatalities over the past 10 years.
With this in mind, the government has announced a road safety strategy intended to save thousands of lives. Launched on 7 January 2026, the strategy intends to:
The aim is to reduce deaths and serious injuries on Britain's roads by 65% by 2035, with an even more stretching target of 70% for children under 16.
The government plans to do this by adopting the internationally recognised Safe System approach. This system acknowledges while human error is inevitable, deaths and serious injuries are not. It aims to ensure that road design, vehicle safety, enforcement and education work together to protect all road users.
The government also plans to take action on:
A new Road Safety Investigation Branch will analyse collision patterns and inform prevention strategies, drawing on police and healthcare data to identify causes and target interventions.
The strategy also mandates 18 new vehicle safety technologies, including autonomous emergency braking and lane-keeping assistance.
Secretary of State for Transport, Heidi Alexander, said: “Every life lost on our roads is a tragedy that devastates families and communities. For too long, progress on road safety has stalled. This strategy marks a turning point.
We are taking decisive action to make our roads safer for everyone, from new drivers taking their first lessons to older motorists wanting to maintain their independence. The measures we are announcing today will save thousands of lives over the coming decade.”
The drink-drive limit in England and Wales hasn’t changed since 1967 and is currently the highest in Europe. The government plans to consult on lowering this from 80mg per 100ml of blood to around 20mg for novice motorists and those within their two-year probation period, and 50mg per 100ml for all other drivers.
This has drawn criticism from the pub industry with The British Beer and Pub Association saying the government needs to ‘mitigate the significant impact further restrictions would have for pubs, jobs and community hubs in rural areas, which may already suffer from little to no public transport’.
There are also plans to explore the use of preventative technology such as alcohol interlock (or alcolock) devices. This would mean drink-drive offenders are required to have one fitted to their vehicle if they wanted to drive again.
Although it’s been rumoured for a while, it’s now confirmed there will be a consultation on mandatory eyesight testing for drivers aged over 70. Auto Express says: ‘With those over 70 accounting for one in four drivers killed in 2024, motorists in their 70s or older will be required to undergo an eye examination every three years to determine whether they are fit to drive’.
There are also potentially plans to introduce cognitive testing for older drivers that can protect all road users, but these will need to be developed first.
Learner drivers could face a wait of between three and six months after passing their theory test to take their practical. This break would be designed to give learners the chance to develop their skills and drive in a variety of conditions.
They can do this through both formal lessons with a driving instructor and supervised lessons with friends or family members, so don’t forget to take out learner driver insurance if doing the latter.
According to official figures, a fifth of all deaths or serious injuries from crashes involved a young car driver in 2024 - and 55% of tests were taken by drivers aged between 17 and 25 in 2024-25. Evidence from other countries suggests minimum learning periods could reduce collisions by up to 32%.
There are also plans to target the following issues:
The strategy will be overseen by a new Road Safety Board, chaired by the Minister for Local Transport with support from local authorities, emergency services, active travel groups and road safety organisations.
There will also be a focus on vulnerable road users. Children from the most deprived neighbourhoods face 4 times the pedestrian casualty rate of those in the least deprived areas, so there will be a focus on rural roads.
Motorcyclists account for just 1% of motor vehicle traffic but 21% of road deaths. This leads to consultations around reforms to motorcycle training, testing and licensing and supporting trials to improve motorcycle safety on rural roads.
As an estimated 1 in 3 road traffic fatalities involve someone driving or riding for work, the government also plans to launch a national standard charter for employers that requires people to drive or ride for work.
This will aim to help public- and private-sector businesses reduce work-related road risk by promoting good practice, accountability and compliance with existing legislation.
This will cover:
The government’s plan for this strategy has been met with a mostly positive reaction from leading motoring and safety organisations, with The RAC road safety spokesperson, Rod Dennis, saying:
“We’ve long said the dial needs to be turned up when it comes to reducing road casualties, so we warmly welcome this strategy – and especially the reintroduction of casualty reduction targets, that were scrapped 16 years ago.
The simple truth is that this strategy can’t come soon enough. Britain might have some of the safest roads by international standards, but on average, 4 people are still killed and 76 seriously injured every single day. That’s an unacceptable number of lives being ruined or cut short.
The strategy addresses many areas we know drivers are concerned about, including drink and drug-driving, ‘ghost’ plates and dazzling headlights. The inclusion of a commitment to consult on the use of alcohol interlocks for convicted drink-drivers – which are internationally proven to save lives – is particularly encouraging, especially given the extent to which drivers are supportive of their use. It’s also positive to see proposals on the table for both improving young driver safety and tackling the scourge of uninsured drivers who push up motor insurance costs for everyone.
It’s important to remember that the ultimate success of any new or updated penalties or laws will depend on awareness among drivers and enforcement. But undoubtedly, this strategy is a real chance to give the whole topic of road safety the focus and public attention it deserves. What we need now is for it to quickly evolve into a set of concrete actions that make the roads safer for everyone.”
Read our blog post to find out more about the new driving laws and rules coming in this year.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clym5jvgdepo
https://www.fleetnews.co.uk/news/new-road-safety-strategy-targets-drink-driving-and-older-drivers
https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/news/368648/new-road-safety-strategy-aims-cut-uk-casualty-numbers-half
https://www.ft.com/content/377f8d5c-e9a2-42a5-99bd-41393bca8033
https://uk.news.yahoo.com/major-plan-cut-road-deaths-000100392.html
