IT is now a month since the fuel crisis swept the country, and figures from this time published by Lancashire County Council have brought about a startling revelation.
Although it was still possible for a lot of people to use their cars on what petrol they had, reducing traffic levels in town centres by less than 15 per cent, it has been found that fatal and serious road accidents were down by a phenomenal 58 per cent.
At first this appears to make little sense, until we consider that most people, stuck with what fuel they had, drove in such a way as to save petrol. Better driving techniques, particularly adhering to speed limits and travelling at a relatively constant speed (not accelerating quickly) can save about 10 per cent in fuel consumption and as the figures show, drastically reduce the number of accidents and their severity.
County Councillor Richard Toon responded to the report by saying "This is proof that improving road safety is really in the hands of the driver."
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