Provisional results for reported road casualties in Great Britain last year suggest there were 1,645 fatalities, a decline of 4% compared to 2022.
However, a rise of 6% in the number of pedestrians killed on the roads ‘should be a red flag to the Government' and may be linked to changes to the Highway Code, the RAC has said.
Among other road user groups, the biggest percentage change in fatalities was for motorcyclists, which showed a decline of 12%, while car occupant fatalities fell by 5%.
The 6% increase in pedestrian fatalities contrasted with a 7% fall in pedal cyclist fatalities.
Reported road KSI (adjusted) casualties in Great Britain 2013 to 2023 (provisional)
There were also 29,643 killed or seriously injured (KSI) casualties, which officials said showed little change compared to 2022 and 132,063 casualties of all severities, a fall of 3%.
The RAC's head of policy, Simon Williams, said: ‘While there has been a slight decline in the year-on-year number of road users killed in crashes, the larger proportion of pedestrian fatalities, which is now at its highest since before the pandemic, should be a red flag to the Government signifying just how dangerous our roads still are.
‘It's extremely concerning that these figures have risen in the two years since the Highway Code was changed with a view to making the roads safer for the most vulnerable users. We hope there isn't a negative link between the two, but with RAC research showing a third of drivers think pedestrians now face greater danger at junctions due to the changes, there seem to be questions that need answering.'
He added: ‘Any number of deaths on the road is too many, so we strongly encourage the new Government not to take these figures lightly and to make road safety a priority.
‘We continue to believe the Government should reinstate road casualty reduction targets.'
