H.—4o

(iii) Of the persons killed, 62 per cent; were occupants of motor-vehicles, 12 per cent, were bicyclists, and 25 per cent, pedestrians. Of the injured, motor-vehicle occupants represented 63 per cent., bicyclists 19 per cent., but pedestrians only 17 per cent. Of the casualties to drivers or other occupants of motor-vehicles, there was I death for every 21 injured and 1 cyclist was killed for 33 cyclists injured. The severity of accidents to pedestrians was much more considerable, however, as there was 1 death for every 14 injured. (iv) Nearly 27 per cent, of those killed or injured were under twenty years and nearly 13 per cent, under fifteen years. Over 12 per cent, of the victims were over fifty-five years. (v) Accidents are most frequent during the late afternoon and evening hours. No less than 39 per cent, of all accidents occurred between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. (vi) Twenty-two per cent, of all accidents occurred on Saturdays, and over 52 per cent, of the weekly total occurred on Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. (vii) Of all accidents, 36J per cent, occurred at dusk or in hours of darkness. The corresponding proportion of fatal accidents occurring under those conditions has not yet been ascertained, but in past years nearly 50 per cent, of the total fatal accidents occurred at dusk or dark. It thus seems evident that accidents at night are apt to result in more serious consequences. (viii) Although past records have shown that the majority of fatal accidents (59 per cent, in 1936-37) occur on rural roads, these complete statistics show that only one-tliird of all accidents involving injury occur on the country highways and other rural roads. This supports the conclusion that when accidents occur on the open road where speeds are normally higher their severity tends to be greater than in town areas. (ix) Every third accident occurred on a straight, flat road or street. A further 36 per cent. occurred at road or street intersections. (x) Forty-four per cent, of the vehicles involved in accidents were less than three years old. The proportion of all vehicles which are in this category is not known. (xi) The following table has been prepared showing the number of accidents in which different types of vehicles have been involved, the number licensed in each category, the estimated annual mileages, and the respective number of accidents per million miles travelled.

(xii) Apart from general negligence, the predominant faults of motorists which led to accidents were — (1) Failure to keep to the left (including cutting corners). (2) Failure to yield right of way. (3) Excessive speed. These accounted for 80 per cent, of the specific driving breaches which were a factor in causing accidents. There were 93 cases of intoxicated drivers involved in accidents. (xiii) A feature of the statistics obtained was the large number of unlicensed drivers involved in accidents. No less than 385 drivers of motor-vehicles, or 1 driver in every 14 involved held no license to drive. (xiv) Vehiclc defects were present in 397 instances—i.e., nearly 10 per cent, of the accidents. The worst features in this connection were : Dazzling headlights, inadequate headlights, defective brakes, faulty steering. These faults accounted for two-thirds of the vehicle defects reported. (xv) Bicyclists involved in 989 collisions with motor-vehicles (and also sundry other accidents where no collision actually occurred) contributed towards these accidents by committing 691 specific breaches of the laws relating to bicyclists and cycle equipment. Similar faults were prevalent as in the case of motorists, the main breaches being reckless or careless riding, failure to keep to the left, and failure to yield the right of way. (xvi) Pedestrians were involved in 841 collisions with motor-vehicles, and contributed towards these accidents by committing over four hundred breaches of the various regulations laid down for the conduct of pedestrians. One of the most important actions of pedestrians causing accidents is that of running or walking heedlessly across the street

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Number of Accidents in which Average Number Number of T fV I - I the Type of of Vehicles Estimated Accidents per ' Vehicle was licensed during Annual Mileage. Million Miles involved during the Year. travelled, the Year. Motor-cycles .. .. .. 885 19,172 3,000 15-4 Motor-cars .. .. .. 2,831 173,901 4,000 4-1 Goods-vehicles .. .. .. 833 45,507 7,000 2-6 Taxis., .. .. .. 230 1,667 20,000 6-9 Service cars and omnibuses .. 54 1,253 30,000 1-4 Rental cars .. .. .. 56 587 15,000 6-4