DURING the first six months of this year 332 people were killed or seriously injured on Lancashire roads, new statistics have revealed.

The figures, released by Lancashire County Council, also show that 41 of the incidents involved children.

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Over the same period in 2014, a total of 338 people were killed or seriously injured, of which 32 were children.

A spokesman for the council said: “Driving speed is an important factor in road safety.

“Speed not only affects the severity of a crash, but is also related to the risk of being involved in a crash.

“There is good evidence internationally for the effectiveness of reducing the speed and volume of traffic in reducing injury rates “The management of speed remains a high priority and is a key element of making the roads safer and improving public confidence.

“Road injuries now rank as the world’s eighth-leading cause of death and the biggest cause of death in young people aged between 15 to 24 years.

“Great Britain has injury rates among the lowest in Europe, yet despite this 1,775 people were killed and 22,807 people were seriously injured in 2014.

“During 2014, fatalities rose for the first time in 11 years, except for the calendar year 2010 when there was a rise attributed to severe weather.

“Similarly, during 2014 there was the first rise in seriously injured casualties since 1994.”