New figures have revealed that an average of 140 casualties have been reported on Stirling’s roads in the five year period to 2022.
The data has been included in Transport Scotland’s latest breakdown on incidents across the country’s roads, with the average for the region dropping slightly on the same figure in last year’s report.
The fall in casualties reflects a general drop seen across Scotland’s roads in 2022, with a total of 4,109 collisions registered in which someone was killed or injured - the third-lowest number since records began but a slight rise on previous figures which were affected by Covid restrictions.
However, the number of fatalities on the country’s roads did rise to their highest level since 2016 - with 174 people losing their lives.
Across the Forth Valley area as a whole, there was an average of 319 road casualties reported in 2022.
Clackmannanshire saw an average of 33 over the five-year period from 2018 to 2022, making it the fourth-lowest rate recorded in Scotland.
Following publication of the figures, Transport Minister Kevin Stewart said: “Any increase in road deaths and injuries is deeply concerning.
“Behind every number we see in the statistics today is a loved one who is now tragically no longer with us or a life changed forever.
“To see lives cut short in this way is deeply unfair and I refuse to accept that road casualties are in some way inevitable – they are avoidable and can be stopped. One death on our roads is simply one too many.
“Road safety remains an absolute priority for this government and I’m determined that we continue to make investments which support our Road Safety Framework to 2030, which sets out our vision for Scotland to have the best road safety performance in the world by 2030 and an ambitious long term goal where no one is seriously injured or killed on our roads by 2050.”
Meanwhile, a charity focused on preventing life-changing injuries as a result of accidents has called on authorities to publish figures on casualties more regularly.
Karen McDonnell, head of RoSPA Scotland, said: “RoSPA recognise that the Key Reported Road Casualties Scotland 2022 present total casualty figures that are the third lowest since records began, indeed since 2000, the number of people killed on Scotland’s roads had decreased by 47 per cent.
“However, there are 33 more families and communities with empty seats at their tables here in 2022. Whilst, compared to 2021, cyclist casualties fell by seven per cent, pedestrian casualties increased by 17 per cent, car casualties increased by nine per cent and motorcyclists by two per cent.
“Scotland’s roads are a shared space, road users with greater power have greater responsibility, people walking, people cycling and people on motorcycles are vulnerable.
“Through the Scottish Occupational Road Safety Alliance, RoSPA will continue to be part of the national conversation about road safety.”
