Walking in Plymouth

Pedestrians are classed as the most vulnerable group of road users. In Plymouth in 2004 there were a total of 210 pedestrian casualties. The needs of the pedestrian are a priority for the Council and through a combination of education, encouragement, enforcement and engineering we are improving the walking environment in Plymouth.

The Council's Pedestrian Strategy stresses the importance of giving greater priority to pedestrians and their needs, through this we will help to reduce traffic congestion on the city’s roads and in turn improve air quality, reduce accidents and build greater opportunities for accessing employment, education and other services in Plymouth.

Walking facts and figures

• 13% of people living in Plymouth choose to travel to work on foot, compared to 11% nationally.
• 44% of children in Plymouth walk to school, compared to 48% nationally.
• Two national footpaths pass through Plymouth, the South West Coast Path between Admiral’s Hard and Jennycliffe, and a link to the Two Moors Way, which connect Dartmoor and Exmoor.
• Claims relating to the condition of publicly maintained footways have continued to drop.
• Older people and young women tend to feel most vulnerable as pedestrians, however the most likely victims of violent crime are young men and incidents are usually alcohol related.

Pedestrian casualties

Since 2001 the number of pedestrians injured in Plymouth has shown an overall downward trend. However the reduction in pedestrian casualties has not been constant, therefore further monitoring and analysis will continue to take place.

The table below shows the number of pedestrian casualties in Plymouth over a five-year period, 2000 to 2004, broken down into age groups. This table shows the most vulnerable, or at risk, group in Plymouth are five to 15 year olds. This age group accounted for 35.1% of all pedestrian casualties. Likely reasons for this could include that they are likely to be making more journeys on foot than other age groups or because of their inability to judge traffic speeds.

Source: Devon and Cornwall Police Database and Census 2003.

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