THE number of people killed or injured in road accidents in the Capital fell by more than eight per cent last year, new figures showed today.
And the statistics show an even stronger underlying downward trend in the number of casualties, with the average for 2003-07 more than 28 per cent down on the average for 1994-98.
There were six people killed on Edinburgh's roads last year, compar
ed with 13 in 2006, while fatal and serious casualties were 193 last year, compared to 218 in 2006. Total casualties were 1592 last year, compared with 1736 in 2006.
The figures are in line with a national fall in road accident casualties, down by seven per cent to the lowest figure since 1950. Across Scotland there were 282 fatalities, 32 fewer than 2006, and 2316 seriously injured, 310 fewer than 2006.
Transport Minister Stewart Stevenson welcomed the fall, but said that the Scottish Government would not be complacent and would continue to do all it can to reduce accidents even further.
He said: "It is clear that we can all do more to get our road safety messages across to people of all ages and all driving abilities.
"Road fatalities may be at their lowest level for more than 50 years, but 282 people dying on our roads in Scotland is still 282 too many.
"The Scottish Government wants to do all we can to reduce that number even further and stop the heartache being experienced by too many families across the country.
"We are currently working with some of the leading thinkers on road safety from across Scotland and Europe to help inform a new Road Safety Strategy for Scotland which will be published later this year."
He said he also welcomed the UK Department for Transport's consultation on plans to change the driver training and testing regime.
"Legislative change and updating the driver testing system will be important tools in our efforts to reduce accidents. Meanwhile, I would urge drivers to heed the warnings, not to be complacent, and to drive safely."
The underlying downward trend in casualties saw the number of people killed on injured fall from an average of 2392 in 1994-98 to 1715 in 2003-07. Average fatalities halved from 18 to nine.
The decline in casualties was mirrored in a decrease in the number of accidents in the Capital – down by 7.6 per cent from 1444 in 2006 to 1333 last year.
And the trend showed a 27.8 per cent drop from an average of 1995 accidents in Edinburgh in 1994-98 to an average 1439 in 2003-07.
The full article contains 448 words and appears in Edinburgh Evening News newspaper.
