There are many rural roads surrounding Thatcham, and AA are aiming to raise awareness of the frequency of lethal accidents on rural roads, which is 71% of all driving accident deaths.
The AA Charitable Trust Young Rural Drivers campaign has found that 8 in 10 severely underestimate the risk of death for driving teens. Often the more widely reported dangers such as drugs, gun and knife crime are perceived as more serious threats to young people, but this goes against the researched data.
Only 14% of young motorists, which is just one in six, believe that driving accidents pose the greatest risk posed the most significant threat to their safety. While this perception related to driving has not particularly changed since 2013, there has been a rise in the belief that drugs pose the greatest threat to teens. It rose from 31% in 2008 to 39% today. Despite this perception, globally it is road crashes which are the leading cause of death for teens. UK stats illustrate that 2,223 17-19 year olds died or were injured in accidents on the road.
The AA Charitable Trust has provided some facts surrounding accidents involving young drivers. It appears that July, August, October, and November tend to have the highest proportion of crashes involving young drivers. Statistically, the day with highest proportion of crashes on rural roads is Sunday, which is 9% higher than urban roads.
It is imperative that driving schools do their best to highlight the risks of rural driving on young people.