Key Statistics 906 Pedestrians Killed 9,575 Seriously Injured 34,405 Slightly Injured Summary Statistics about the involvement of road users in injury road accidents are based on a reporting process which depends on both public and police participation. The reporting rates for pedestrians and pedal cyclists are estimated to be much lower than for drivers, riders and passengers of motor vehicles.
Pedestrian deaths represent over a quarter of all road deaths.
However, in terms of distance travelled, a pedestrian are estimated to be roughly nineteen times as likely to be killed in a road accident as a car occupant. In 1987 the government set a target for a one third reduction in road casualties by 2000 from the 1981-85 baseline average. The total of 906 deaths in 1998 is the lowest since records began in 1927. Since the war, the highest number of pedestrian deaths came in 1966 when 3,153 were killed. However, since 1988 the total has decreased annually, despite the continuous growth in road traffic.