Government launches major road safety consultations
Alongside the publication of the new Road Safety Strategy, the Government has opened an extensive set of consultations that together could represent one of the most significant overhauls of road safety policy in recent years.
The five consultations relate to proposals in the strategy. Collectively, they cover motorcycle training, novice and older drivers, motoring offences and vehicle technology.
The outcomes are likely to inform both primary and secondary legislation. This is therefore not simply a technical exercise, but a pivotal opportunity to influence how future road safety policy is designed, implemented and enforced across Great Britain.
We encourage organisations and individuals with an interest in road safety to consider contributing their evidence and experience. These explainers draw on PACTS research and include a takeaway from PACTS’ expert members.
Moped and Motorcycle Training, Testing and Licensing
The Government is proposing wide ranging reforms to moped and motorcycle licensing. Proposals include changes to theory and hazard perception tests, licence progression routes, instructor standards and the introduction of digital Compulsory Basic Training certification.
Powered two wheelers remain disproportionately represented in serious collisions. Ensuring training reflects real world riding conditions and emerging risks is essential.
PACTS has long engaged on this issue. We host a subgroup of the PACTS Road User Behaviour Working Party focused on powered two-wheeler safety and were signatories to a July 2023 letter to the Secretary of State led by Transport for London.
The renewed focus on motorcycling within the Road Safety Strategy has been widely welcomed. As Anna Zee, Director of Political and Technical Services at the British Motorcyclists Federation and Chair of the National Motorcyclists Council, said:
“The inclusion of motorcycling in the proposed Road Safety Strategy is particularly welcome since motorcycling has effectively been ignored in all such strategies for well over a decade and we look forward to working with the Government to develop areas such as the licensing consultation and other safety related ideas.”
Improving training standards and licensing structures must sit within a wider Safe System, ensuring that riders are equipped with the skills, awareness and protection they need in increasingly complex traffic environments.
Minimum Learning Period for Learner Drivers
The Government’s consultation on learner drivers considers whether a mandatory minimum learning period should be introduced before candidates can take their practical driving test. Proposals include requiring a minimum number of supervised driving hours, mandatory syllabuses and implementing more structured learning requirements.
Research consistently shows that newly qualified drivers face an elevated risk of collisions, particularly in the first months after passing their test. Exposure to a wide range of road conditions, structured guidance, and graduated experience can significantly reduce this risk, helping young drivers build safe habits that last.
PACTS has prioritised young driver safety for over a decade, contributing to expert groups in the early 2010s and to the initial development of Driver 2020. In 2025, we launched updated young driver resources to strengthen the evidence base and support informed policy discussion.
Strengthening the learning process is not about restricting mobility, but about ensuring that new drivers develop safe behaviours from the outset. As Rebecca Morris, Road Safety Communications Specialist and Campaign Lead at Protect Young Drivers, highlights:
“Young drivers are involved in a disproportionate number of the most serious road collisions, so while this proposal is welcome, it must be seen as a first step, with further interventions and a minimum learning period needed to deliver lasting improvements in safety.”
Mandatory Eyesight Testing for Older Drivers
The Government is seeking views on whether drivers above a certain age should undergo mandatory eyesight testing when renewing their licence.
This is a sensitive but vital issue. Road safety policy must balance the need for drivers to remain physically fit with the importance of independence and mobility for older people.
In It’s My Choice: Safer Mobility for an Ageing Population, PACTS recommended encouraging regular eyesight checks and raising awareness of fitness-to-drive issues. PACTS is also involved in the Standardised Mature Driver Assessment Evaluation study, funded by the Road Safety Trust. This national evaluation is examining whether voluntary mature driver assessments, delivered by councils or trained instructors, are consistent and effective. The goal is to understand whether these assessments help drivers continue driving safely for longer and whether delivery is consistent nationwide.
Former PACTS Trustee John Plowman, now Chair of the Older Drivers Taskforce, has overseen a series of reports exploring how to support safe driving in later life. The Taskforce continues to develop practical measures that protect safety without unnecessarily restricting independence.
As Rob Heard, retired Police Sergeant and MBE-recognised road safety advocate with Driving Mobility, highlights:
“This is great news because it signals a long-overdue shift from a reactive, self-declaration system to a genuinely preventive approach to road safety. Vision provides around 90% of the information needed for safe driving, yet most drivers are never formally checked after passing their test, even as eyesight naturally deteriorates with age. Linking routine eyesight testing to licence renewal from age 70 would help identify problems early—before offences or collisions occur—while supporting older drivers to continue driving safely for longer through timely correction or treatment. Crucially, this can be delivered through existing free NHS sight tests, making it proportionate, accessible and publicly supported, and aligning driver licensing with evidence, fairness and Safe System principles.”
Improving eyesight monitoring is one part of ensuring that older drivers remain confident, independent, and safe behind the wheel.
For those interested in mature driver safety, the upcoming one-day national Mature Drivers Conference, hosted by Road Safety GB and supported by GEM Motoring Assist, The Road Safety Trust and Waymo, will bring together professionals and stakeholders to explore evidence-based approaches to keeping mature drivers safe and independent. Learn more and register here: Mature Drivers’ Conference: Safe System Thinking for Mature Road Users Tickets, Tuesday, Apr 28 from 9 am to 4 pm | Eventbrite
Changes to Penalties for Motoring Offences
The consultation on motoring offences reviews penalties for drink and drug driving, seat belt offences, uninsured driving, MOT non-compliance and other violations. It asks whether current sanctions remain proportionate and effective in deterring unsafe behaviour.
Enforcement has been a PACTS priority for over a decade. Our 2020 report, Roads Policing and its Contribution to Road Safety, demonstrated the central role that visible and consistent enforcement plays in reducing casualties.
PACTS has published extensively on drink driving, including:
In 2024, PACTS contributed to the Alcohol, Drugs and Driving Consensus Statement. We were also involved in the Mobile Evidential Breath Testing Instrument programme, first discussed with DfT in 2017 and subsequently awarded in 2025, strengthening enforcement capability.
Drug driving has emerged as a growing concern, examined in our 2021 report Drug Driving: The Tip of an Iceberg?
Research also shows uninsured drivers present significantly higher risks. Our policing report highlighted that the accident probability of uninsured drivers is 34 percentage points higher than that of insured drivers, and Motor Insurers’ Bureau data show uninsured vehicles are more likely to be linked to wider criminal activity. Wider compliance issues have also been explored in PACTS’ Driver Compliance: The Role of Technology in Encouraging Safe Driving report, led by Dr Nick Reed, which examined seat belt and mobile phone offences, and in the APPG for Transport Safety’s Ghosts on the Road inquiry into illegal registration plates. Together, this body of work reinforces the need for effective enforcement and proportionate penalties to deter unsafe and unlawful behaviour on our road.
Emma Kelly, Senior Adviser at Road Safety Support, said:
“These proposed reforms to penalties for motoring offences are not about punishing people for the sake of it, they are about modernising laws that have gone unchanged for decades and ensuring the consequences for dangerous behaviour reflect the real harm it causes in our communities. By making penalties proportionate, visible and targeted at the behaviours that contribute most to deaths and serious injury, we strengthen both enforcement and public trust. Most drivers are responsible and law-abiding, but when someone puts others at risk through drink-driving, uninsured driving or other serious breaches, there must be clear, fair and credible consequences. I would strongly encourage stakeholders to engage with the consultation to help ensure future enforcement is effective and capable of delivering safer roads for everyone.”
Effective penalties, combined with visible enforcement, remain fundamental to reducing deaths and serious injuries.
Vehicle Safety Technologies in GB Type Approval
The Government proposes mandating advanced safety technologies for new vehicles through GB type approval requirements. Measures under consideration include emergency braking systems, intelligent speed assistance, lane keeping systems, driver monitoring, pedestrian and cyclist protection and event data recorders.
PACTS has closely followed developments in vehicle regulation and Safe System implementation. Our work on the General Safety Regulation has examined how UK standards align with international best practice and how new technologies can prevent collisions rather than merely mitigate their consequences. Mandating proven technologies can accelerate casualty reduction and ensure that all road users benefit from advances in vehicle safety.
As Richard Cuerden, Academy Director at TRL, stated in the 2023 PACTS briefing Still Unvaccinated: GSR One Year On:
“Without urgent action and adoption of these cost-effective measures people will die and be injured in collisions that are totally preventable – we have bought the medicine and are choosing not to take it.”
Transport Select Committee
Alongside the Government’s consultations on elements included in the Road Safety Strategy, the Transport Select Committee (TSC) has launched an inquiry to examine the ambitions and potential effectiveness of the strategy. The inquiry will scrutinise the Government’s proposals and consultations, and evidence on wider issues raised by the strategy, including speed limit management, safety on rural roads, and lessons from international and UK practice.
The call for evidence launched as part of this inquiry gives an opportunity to provide more general feedback on the aims and proposals of the strategy, crucially it offers the chance to speak about where the strategy doesn’t go far enough and to advocate for other long standing road safety priorities that haven’t been considered by the Government.
PACTS will analyse each proposal in detail and submit formal responses informed by evidence and member input. We encourage stakeholders to engage with the consultations and share views to help shape the future of road safety policy.
