§ 118. Sir A. V. Harveyasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works, as representing the Lord President of the Council, what steps are being taken to increase research on the prevention of injuries in road accidents, in order that this country may not fall behind the level of research already being carried out in the United States of America and on the Continent.
§ Mr. H. NichollsExtensive researches aimed at the prevention of road accidents generally are being carried out by the Road Research Laboratory. This work includes such items as the control of vehicles during emergency braking, improvements in tyres and road surfaces to give better adhesion on wet roads, improvement in vehicle and street lighting and in helmets for motor-cyclists. Safety aspects of motor vehicle design to 173W minimise injuries in road accidents are being investigated in the Slough area by the Laboratory with the co-operation of the police and of the Medical Research Council. The staff available for this detailed study of accidents has recently been increased and facilities for simulating vehicle accidents and for testing individual components are also being built up. There is the fullest cooperation in this field and the Laboratory studies results obtained by research elsewhere, particularly in the U.S.A., so as to consider their applicability to conditions in this country and to avoid unnecessary duplication of work.
§ 119. Mr. Sparksasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Works, as representing the Lord President of the Council, what is the latest percentage of road accidents due to mechanical defects in vehicles as assessed by the Road Research Laboratory; and what are the commonest mechanical defects found.
§ Mr. H. NichollsThe most reliable, though limited, facts available for assessment to the Road Research Laboratory are provided by accidents occurring in the daytime near the Laboratory, which are investigated in detail, on the site, by staff from the Laboratory. In 15 per cent. of the 261 such accidents studied during the years 1955–58, a mechanical defect in the vehicle is held to have played an important part. About one half of the defects were in the brakes.