11:55am Wednesday 4th April 2007
By Sally Henfield
Almost every two weeks, one young driver is killed on Lancashire's roads. Here are 20 reasons to back our campaign to stop the carnage.
* Every day across the UK four people are seriously injured or killed in accidents involving young drivers.
* Nationally, 1 in 8 licence holders are under 25 yet 1 in 4 road deaths involve this age group.
* In 2006, 254 people aged between 17 - 25 were seriously injured in road accidents in Lancashire.
* Matthew Hannon was one of 22 people aged under 25 who died in road accidents in Lancashire in 2006.
* In 2005 18 people aged under 25 died in road accidents in Lancashire.
* Since 2002 the number of road deaths involving under 25s in Lancashire has risen by 22 per cent.
* Lancashire's 2006 fatality rate was ten times higher for males aged under 25 than it was for females in the same age group.
* One in three males between 17 and 20 crash within two years of passing their test.
* An 18-year-old male is three times more likely to be involved in a crash than a 48-year-old driver.
* It takes a new driver two seconds longer to react to a dangerous situation than an experienced driver.
* 50 per cent of accidents involving young drivers happen at night.
* Over 40 per cent of young male drivers' accidents that occur between 11pm and 6am are fatal or involve serious injury, compared to 20 per cent at other times.
* Young people aged between 17 - 19 are more likely to be in a crash where only their vehicle is involved.
* The probability of a young driver having an accident is 39 per cent higher if they have a passenger in the car with them.
* This rises to 85 per cent when there are two or more young friends in the car and 182 per cent if there are three or more people with them.
* Compared to more mature drivers, 17 - 18-year-old males have around 70 per cent more of their accidents while involved in competition with another road user.
* Young drivers have twice as many accidents while negotiating a bend, compared to older drivers.
* For every one per cent increase in speed the risk of an accident increases by eight per cent. On average young people drive 11 per cent faster than older drivers.
* Around 40 per cent of young drivers' accidents occur on wet roads.
* 35 per cent of drink drivers involved in accidents in 2005 were aged between 17 and 25.
Statistics from Department of Transport, Brake road safety charity and Lancashire Police.
© Copyright 2001-2012 Newsquest Media Group
http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk