News / Society

UK traffic casualties soar over police cuts

Sunday, 01 February 2015 1:41 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 01 February 2015 1:43 PM ]

Road fatalities up in the UK over traffic police cuts.

Britain has witnessed a surge in fatal road accidents following cuts to traffic police.

New figures reportedly show road deaths have continued to surge for a third consecutive quarter after a significant number of traffic patrols have been eliminated from Britain’s road system.

The Department for Transport on Thursday is expected to confirm an alarming trend among those killed or seriously injured (KSI) in automobile accidents, RT reported.

In the first six months of 2014, the percentage of KSIs had surged 4%, to 24,580, while the latest quarterly results are expected to take that figure even higher, the report added.

UK Transport Minister Robert Goodwill warned a parliamentary road safety conference last week to prepare for “bad news” ahead of Thursday’s announcement, telling attendees to expect a “rise” in road fatalities.

Road safety activists blame the surge in road deaths on austerity measures that have cut road police numbers by 12% across the country, with some regions losing up to 40% of their traffic police force.

The steep cuts in police numbers follow a 5-year decline in police budgets as the government adheres to austerity measures.

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