Greater Manchester Fire & Rescue Service (GMFRS) will use the findings of new analysis and research to help identify future target audiences for road safety initiatives.
During 2023, an independent review of Safe Drive Stay Alive was commissioned to help GMFRS understand whether the initiative was effective and targeted towards the correct audience.
To support this review, research was commissioned to understand the circumstances of road casualties within Greater Manchester over the period 2012 to 2021.
The analysis found that the number of road casualties across England decreased by 32% between 2012 and 2021. Within Greater Manchester, the numbers of road casualties decreased by 36% over the same period.
There were 1.5 male road casualties to every one female casualty in England. Within Greater Manchester, this ratio was broadly similar, with 1.55 male casualties to every one female casualty.
This means that males were more likely to become a casualty on the roads than females.
Elsewhere, when adjusted for population, the age group with the most driver/rider and passenger road casualties was the 18-25 age group, followed by the 26-49 age group.
The age group with the most pedestrian road casualties was the under 18 age group, followed by the 18-25 age group.
The report states: “Over the period studied road casualties were steadily decreasing. The rate of reductions within Greater Manchester was greater when compared with England as a whole.
“The analysis suggests that males were roughly 1.5 times more likely to become road casualties than females. Overall, the rate of road casualties decreased with age, with younger road users being more at risk than older road users. Road injuries occurred most frequently on 30mph roads than on roads with other speed limits.
“This suggests that younger age groups, especially young males, are a key demographic that GMFRS should target for road safety campaigns. Messaging related to pedestrian road safety should be targeted towards children and young people aged under 18, and risks related to driver and passenger safety should be targeted towards young people aged 18 – 25.”
The report recommends that GMFRS uses these findings to inform future target audiences for road safety initiatives and/or to provide assurance that the correct audiences are being targeted as part of future road safety initiatives.
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