In the week all the main political parties will launch their manifestos for next month’s General Election, the RAC is highlighting six key priorities for the incoming government that would ‘improve the lives of the country’s 40m drivers’.
The RAC’s calls to action are backed by the company’s ongoing analysis of data and driver research – including from its annual Report on Motoring that has provided an ‘unrivalled view’ of motorists’ concerns and behaviours on the road since 1989.
The RAC’s six priorities for the next government are: better local roads, fairer fuel prices, a road safety reset, reduce the motor insurance tax burden, support the transition to EVs, and ensure civil motoring offences are enforced fairly.
With regards to road safety, the RAC is calling for:
- Give road safety the attention and resources it deserves by reintroducing formal road casualty reduction targets, which were scrapped in 2010
- Convert all-lane running stretches of smart motorway to either controlled motorways, with hard shoulders permanently restored, or to dynamic hard shoulder schemes – where a hard shoulder is in place for much of the day and night.
- Launch a consultation on introducing a Graduated Driving Licensing (GDL) scheme to keep new drivers safe.
- Follow through with the previous government’s commitment to fund independent research into the problems of headlight glare.
- Work with police forces and road safety organisations to introduce a crackdown on drivers who speed excessively
Simon Williams, RAC head of policy, said: “From potholes to pump prices, and from private parking operators to public EV charging, there was always going to be a lot sitting in the new government’s in-tray come July 4th.
“If our six key priorities, all of which are supported by data and research with drivers, are implemented over the course of the next parliamentary term they will bring meaningful benefits for road users up and down the country.
“We’ll be using this list to evaluate each of the main party’s election manifestos as they’re launched this week and hope that ministers-to-be do indeed ‘deliver for drivers’ by taking heed of their most pressing concerns, not least those connected to the high cost of living.”
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