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DfT launch a consultation on a proposed new Road Collision Investigation Branch

08 November 2021

The Department for Transport (DfT) has launched a consultation on proposals to set up a Road Collision Investigation Branch (RCIB) dedicated to learning lessons from road traffic collisions, including those involving self-driving vehicles. The consultation will run until December 9th 2021.

In a recent press release, the DfT wrote that the branch would operate much like the similar independent bodies that already exist for air, maritime and rail accidents.

The proposed RCIB would ‘carry out thematic investigations and probe specific incidents of concern to establish the causes of collisions and make independent safety recommendations to help further improve road safety across the country’.

Roads Minister Baroness Vere said, “The UK’s roads are among the safest in the world, but we’re always looking at ways to make them even safer.

“A new investigation branch would play a huge role in this work by identifying the underlying causes of road traffic collisions, so we can take action to prevent them from happening again.

“It would also provide us with vital insight as we continue to modernise our road network to ensure better, greener and safer journeys”.

Head of campaigns at the road safety charity Brake Jason Wakeford commented, “Currently, information about the perceived cause of a road crash is recorded by police at the time of a collision, but only provides basic insights which simply are not adequate to properly investigate and determine the most effective countermeasures to tackle future road casualties.

“Brake has long advocated for an independent agency to provide the necessary evidence to learn from crashes and so we applaud the Department for Transport for launching today’s consultation.”

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