The Department for Transport (DfT) has dismissed calls to introduce a national road safety investigation branch similar to those in other areas of transport.
However Transport Network understands something similar is beginning to be established from below by the police.
Transport Network has been told that the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) has a chief officer, ACC Martin Evans in West Mercia, with a portfolio covering road safety investigations.
The Police Federation of England and Wales said it is hoping to work with stakeholders through this portfolio to better understand how the high standards, set nationally, for serious collision investigations are adhered to and identify learning as necessary for the benefit of both the police and the public.
Top road safety charity Brake called for a road safety investigation unit in the wake of a steep rise in fatalities on Scottish Roads. The RAC Foundation, led by former DfT director Steve Gooding, has also called on the new Government to introduce such a unit.
The RAC Foundation suggested a road accident investigation branch could bring 'the same rigour to learning the lessons of road crashes that we apply to the aviation, rail and maritime sectors'.
When asked by Transport Network whether the Government would establish the unit, a DfT spokesperson declined to answer but responded: 'Britain continues to have some of the safest roads in the world and in 2015 we had the second lowest total of road fatalities on record.
'However, we are determined to do more and we’ve recently announced tougher penalties for those caught using a mobile phone while driving. We have also tightened the law to make it easier to prosecute drink-drivers and drug-drivers. We continue to teach motorists about the dangers through our THINK! road safety campaigns.'
There are existing collision investigation units within local police services. However they have been subject to major spending cuts in recent years.
In May, Jayne Willetts, lead on Roads Policing for the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: 'There are now less than 5,000 (4,800) roads policing officers in England and Wales – almost less than half the number in 2000 – it is an understatement to say the blue line is thin.
'Without question, having officers on the roads in marked vehicles, does act as a deterrent. But, due to relentless cuts to police budgets, there has been a very noticeable decline in the number of traffic police and this is impacting on public safety.'
The DfT currently supports the police STATS-19 collision reporting system, which provides statistics about the circumstances of personal injury road accidents, including the types of vehicles involved and the consequent casualties.
The DfT also directly funds a programme of investigation under the Road Accident In-depth Study in conjunction with police forces, coroners and several hospitals.
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