HC Deb 25 March 1946 vol 421 cc161-70

Motion made, and Question proposed, "That this House do now adjourn."—[Mr. Mathers.]

9.42 p.m.

Mr. Skeffinģton-Lodģe (Bedford)

I am very glad to have a few minutes, in which to draw the attention of the House to one of the major social evils in our national life. I refer to the alarming state of affairs concerning road accidents. I do not want to bother the House with a whole plethora of statistics at this time of night, but I ant quite certain that to publicise figures in a dramatic way does much to impress them on the minds of many who are affected only by splash headlines and by the startling presentation of the truth. I would normally be very averse from pandering to this weakness in our modern society, but the road casualty position of this country is so grave that any and every means to arouse the public conscience about it must, I think be adopted.

First of all then, some stark facts. From enemy bombs, the average daily casualties in Great Britain were 29 killed and 40 seriously injured, a total of 69. From road accidents the average daily casualties are 16 killed and 100 seriously injured, a total of 116. Twenty children sleeping peacefully in their beds tonight as I am talking will be dead this time next week. During the war some 44,000 people were killed on the roads. That, roughly, equals the wiping out of the entire population of Bedford, the urban centre of the constituency which I represent in this House. In the same period well over 750,000 folk were injured. Such figures, I think, are a national scandal, and may be Said to be a slur on our civilisation.

I am sorry to say that since the restoration of the basic petrol ration the position has become even more serious. We must not forget that the cost to the nation of these appalling casualties is something in the region of £100,000,000 a year. or, if one likes to put it rather more simply, —300,000 a day. The Government, I know, are to spend about —250,000 a year on publicising the alarming position which is developing and in drawing attention to the road accident situation. It does not seem to me to be altogether adequate in view of the figures which I have just quoted. Every day, as I have said, 16 of our fellow countrymen are killed and 100 seriously injured, and among the killed are four children. It is a grim fact, when one looks at the figures, to find that one child is killed or injured every 12 minutes during daylight hours. Of the total children killed, two-thirds are under seven years of age, and nearly one-half of five years of age or under. As far as children are concerned, it is largely a pre-school problem.

What is the remedy for this intolerable toll of suffering and sorrow in the homes of the nation? I am not going to follow Dr. Joad's example, by giving advice to the effect that cars should be abolished, as he did recently in my constituency when I served on a "brains trust" with him, for he was advocating a solution, as he very often does about other things, which was well outside the realm of practical politics. I do not believe that the remedy for road accidents is purely physical, although there are many practical measures which can be taken in this sphere, some of which I hope to mention before I sit down. Fundamentally, I think that the whole question is a human and psychological problem of the first magnitude. There is a tendency today—a deplorable one—to think far too much in terms of masses, and far too little in terms of the individual. The sanctity of human life means little or nothing to many people. Unfortunately, in our modern civilisation we have become largely inured to the suffering of anyone outside our own experience. I suppose that the war largely accounts for this state of affairs, but six years of apparent indifference means that we have a big leeway to make up.

We need to be more imaginative about our neighbours' troubles. The lack of courtesy and politeness in everyday life, and of due consideration for the welfare of other members of the community, are features at the back of the indifference and selfishness of large numbers of our people about this road accident problem. People never seem to bother about a thing these days unless they are personally inconvenienced or adversely affected by it. The fact is that the shadow of death and of sorrow lies constantly over many families, simply because of the reckless carelessness of many road users. The development of the good citizenship, which I am advocating, will, I feel, go very far to alleviate it. In due course also, such distressing features of the situation, as that which dictates that millions of little children have only the streets to play in, will be remedied, and the return of men from the Forces will likewise help, because they can assist their wives in controlling and looking after the children. I know that the Minister's difficulties are very great, and that he is trying to cope with an extraordinary complex situation.

I have one or two practical suggestions which I would commend to the Parliamentary Secretary. First, I hope that much stiffer driving tests will be imposed than we have had up to now. I think that all people who hold provisional licences should be put "through the hoop," and that those who hold permanent licences, especially those who are not conscientiously certain of their ability to cope with present-day road conditions, should present themselves voluntarily for the more drastic tests which I have in mind. No one would trust two old fogies, complete with "gamps" and a packet of sandwiches, to take charge of a crack locomotive, travelling from King's Cross to Scotland, who only knew how to start and stop the engine. Yet thousands of motorists are utterly incompetent and unfit to be in charge of their death dealing machines which are not tied to rails as is a railway engine.

Secondly, I believe that it would be helpful, and I wish it were already in operation, if all men and women coining out of the Forces were given some dramatic and striking leaflet, setting out the points which I am discussing and asking for their help. These men and women will, undoubtedly, constitute the bulk of our driving population in the years to come. Ignorant drivers are as great a menace on the road as are uninstructed drivers.

Thirdly, I believe that as personnel becomes available, there should be more police available for cross-roads duty and mobile patrols. I am informed that a motor patrol scheme operated before the war in Lancashire, by enforcing road safety and good manners, reduced the road accidents in that county by no less than 46 per cent.

Lastly, I would like the Minister to look very carefully into the question of the speed of motor vehicles, and the more rapid development of road construction. The condition of the Great North Road is appalling, and I believe I am right in saying that two-thirds of its length is only fit for single-line traffic. All road should come under one control, which they do not do at the present time. I think that the amended Highway Code, which I am glad to hear is to be issued very shortly to all householders, should be made so well known as to be come instinctive in all road users. I hope that in that code the rights and duties of all users of the highway will be thoroughly clarified.

I was recently in the South of Ireland where, incidentally, the courtesy and consideration of the people are something which we might well emulate in this country, and I saw that many cars were carrying a short streamer attached to the back windows which read, "I am taking care. Are you? ", for the driver behind to read. That may seem a small thing, but I think that it is a good idea which might well be adopted in this country. I would not advocate some of the American and Continental practices of reminding motorists of places where fatal accidents have taken place by erecting skull and crossbone signs, but I think that something in the nature of an alarm bell might be tried out as an experiment in particularly black patches. Such black listing and advertising of the worst danger spots, would focus attention en an ever-present peril. I would ask the Press to be kinder to the whole subject of road accidents and to give their utmost support to all that is being done to prevent them. It is rather upsetting when we find a minor railway accident or some aeroplane crash hitting the headlines while road casualties go almost unnoticed. That even goes, I am sorry to say, for some of the local newspapers. I am sure that the Minister is vividly conscious of the tragedy of the present position and the risk of its intensification with more vehicles coming on to the roads as they are doing today. I ask for an assurance from his Parliamentary Secretary that all that can be done to help will be done.

9.36 p.m.

Lieut.-Colonel Hamilton (Sudbury)

My hon. Friend has portrayed very clearly what a blot this slaughter on the roads is on our present state of civilisation. I think one of the most important measures that we can take to deal with it is to try to create in the mind of the motor driver, something of the psychology which already exists in the mind of the locomotive driver, or the signalman on the railway. Those men always have at the back of their minds that they are in very responsible positions, and that on their care depend the lives of a great many people. I do not think we can pretend that that is the feeling in the mind of the average motorist. He is thinking more of how quickly he can reach his destination.

I should like to say here that we ought not to attach much importance to the statistics we are sometimes given, showing that only a comparatively small percentage of accidents are attributable to carelessness on the part of the motorist. The reason for that is twofold. Firstly, in a great many cases, no reason can be given, because the principal witness is dead. Secondly, it is not so much a case of avoiding gross carelessness on the part of the motorist: rather we want to inculcate in him an intense feeling of carefulness. For example, if a driver is overtaking a stationary vehicle, and proceeding at the legitimate speed of 30 miles an hour, and a child darts out from behind that vehicle and gets killed, that motorist will not be held to blame. At the same time, had that motorist been driving more carefully, had he kept in mind that someone might dart out from behind that vehicle, and had he moderated his speed, it is possible that no accident would have happened. I would emphasise this question of speed, because it seems to me to be almost a conspiracy to try to pretend that speed makes very little difference. Every motorist—and I have been one for 30 years—knows that that is all nonsense. Speed makes a lot of difference. If a motorist goes twice as fast it does not take him twice the distance to pull up but four times the distance. It is not that he will hit the victim twice as hard, but four times as hard. Therefore, I think we ought to pay great attention to this question of speed.

Time is very short and I can say very little more, though there is a great deal that should be said. While I know how great is the pressure of public business, at the same time I would ask the Government to consider this very important problem and to take it seriously. We ought not to be content with an amelioration; we should demand nothing less than a drastic reduction in the terrible figures of road casualties. I hope the Government will consider providing time at some not too distant date for a discussion on this most important question.

10.00 p.m.

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of War Transport (Mr. G. R. Strauss)

I am sorry to have to intervene now, because many hon. Members wish to speak, but I have been asked a number of questions, and it is only fair I should reply to them. I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Bedford (Mr. Skeffington-Lodge) for raising this important subject. The more public attention is directed to this very great problem and the more its seriousness is appreciated, the more quickly and the more effectively shall we be able to reduce the present appalling toll of the roads.

Mr. Lipson (Cheltenham)

Will the Government remember that when they are asked to hold inquiries after road accidents?

Mr. Strauss

Yes, that is a specific point. We are doing all we can at the moment, as I hope hon. Members will agree, to bring home to the public how serious the situation is, and to make the public realise that road accidents statistics are not just something abstract which has nothing to do with the individual, but that it is a living danger which faces every individual, every child, in the country, and that the abolition or the diminution of road accidents is not just something which can be left to the Government or to the police, but is the direct responsibility of every road user—the motorist, the cyclist and the pedestrian—and that it is only by the realisation of that fact by all road users that we will be able to get results. Although it is impossible to say, after the short period in which the present road safety campaign has run, that it has achieved any definite results—there can be no conclusive proof yet—I think hon. Members will agree that there is today probably a greater consciousness of this danger of the roads than there has been in the past. It will be our endeavour to bring that danger more and more home to the public.

I was asked a number of questions, particularly by my right hon. Friend the Member for Bedford, about details of our road safety activities. He asked about driving tests, and whether we proposed to make them more severe than before. We have been anxious to reintroduce the driving tests as soon as possible, although in my view their usefulness can be exaggerated. Very few accidents take place as a result of the action of motorists after they have only been on the road six months, when they are still driving cautiously. Most of the accidents for which motorists are responsible take place after they have been driving for a long period. But driving tests are important, and we are taking steps to reimpose them. I am hopeful—I cannot promise any date—that we shall be able to do so by the autumn. We are considering at the moment to what class of persons the driving tests shall apply. That is a difficult problem and no decision has yet been made. We will get on with it as quickly as we can.

I was asked about the utility of mobile traffic patrols. There can be no doubt that where these are well organised under, expert direction—and we have some remarkable experience about their usefulness, particularly in Lancashire—these mobile patrols can do much in reducing accidents on the roads. I am hopeful that when the police forces of the country are able to build up their strength again, the policy of having a separate traffic department in each police force will be generally acknowledged, that these traffic departments will benefit from the experience already possessed; and that they will be active all over the country. In fact I go so far as to say that my personal belief is that no single action which can be taken for the reduction of road accidents is more potent than the wide use of mobile patrols.

Comment was made about the present bad condition of the roads. We all have to agree that many of our roads are in an exceedingly bad condition. They were in a bad condition before the war when most of them were too narrow and inadequate for the traffic which had to pass along them, and since the war the condition of many of them has seriously deteriorated. They are very bad, and much money and materials will have to be expended on overtaking arrears of maintenance before we can start improving them on a large scale. We are going to tackle that as soon as we possibly can.

I was asked about the Highway Code. I am glad to be able to inform the House that a new Highway Code has been drawn up and printed. Basically it is similar to the previous Highway Code. In fact it contains nothing in itself very new, but it has been rewritten and is much brighter and more easily read, and it will be presented in a far more attractive form than the old Highway Code. The new edition has been sent to a large number of organisations who are interested in traffic matters. When these have made their comments, the Minister will consider them and present the Code to both Houses of Parliament with such alterations as he may consider desirable. If neither House makes any alteration, after a period of 40 days the Code will be printed in large quantities and delivered into every household in the country. I am confident that when Members see a copy they will agree that it is a great improvement on the old one.

Mr. Bowles (Nuneaton)

But will it have the force of law?

Mr. Strauss

The Highway Code is not the law but a guidance to all who use the roads, pedestrians as well as motorists, and as my hon. Friend probably knows it can be quoted in the courts as a code of behaviour which should be followed by every careful motorist. But it has not actually the force of law.

I would like to say a word about the only action we think we can effectively take at the moment to reduce accidents. I have already stated my belief that mobile patrols, when they can be provided, will be extremely useful. I am also convinced that when we can widen our roads and complete by-passes round villages and do many of the other things that are required, that will help enormously; hut, plainly, neither of those things can be done immediately. The first one can be done in a much shorter time than the other, but we are faced with the certainty that there is going to be in the coming months a considerable increase in traffic on our roads and we have to do something immediately to prevent the traffic accident figures rising above those of the prewar years. We are tackling the matter on a psychological level as we cannot do it on a material level. Convinced as we are that most accidents are due to carelessness on the part of some road user or other, we are trying to kill carelessness on the roads, because it is carelessness that kills human beings. It is for that reason that we have undertaken the Road Safety campaign. A quarter of a million pounds has been allocated already. At Question time I promised the hon. Member for Cheltenham (Mr. Lipson) to break down the figure of £187,000 already spent. The cost for advertising up to date has been £105,000; poster sites £75,000; and the cost of printing posters £7,000. These are all the figures I can give at the moment. Members will have seen the Press and poster advertising and may have heard myself and others on the radio now and again. They may also have seen some of the excellent films which are being produced. We are hopeful that the campaign will produce substantial results. We do not want it to be a stunt—it is no use having a stunt in a matter of this sort—it is a long educational campaign which we are starting. We believe it is very well worth while.

Mr. Hector Hughes (Aberdeen, North)

Is it the intention of the Government to implement any of the findings of the Alness Committee?

Mr. Strauss

I did not want to go into great detail on that, but the findings of the Alness Committee were carefully considered by the Road Safety Committee, 31 which I am now chairman. That committee in its interim report made a number of recommendations, nearly all of which have been accepted by my right hon. Friend, and will be implemented;is and when possible. We arc not, of course, at all satisfied with the progress which has been made so far. We cannot be satisfied. One can get some little satisfaction from the fact that road deaths and casualties are below those of before the war, but they are still very much too high. We shall take every action in our power to get those accidents further reduced. appeal to hon. Members who have any influence in their localities to help in the local road safety committees which are to be set up there, and I am certain that hon. Members in every part of the House will give us all the support they can in any effective action which the Government may take, in the words of our posters "to keep death off our roads."

It being half an hour after the conclusion of Business exempted from the provisions of the Standing Order (Sittings of the House), Mr. DEPUTY-SPEAKER adjourned the House, without Question put, pursuant to the Standing Order, as modified for this Session by the Order made upon 26th August.

Adjourned at Twelve Minutes past Ten o'Clock.