High fuel prices save lives
* Traffic falls only 1%
* Suggests careful driving is the reason
High fuel prices have helped to save up to 140 lives this year because motorists slowed down and drove less aggressively to save money, according to a new survey.
Department for Transport figures show that road deaths fell by 20% in April, May and June this year, the biggest drop in any three-month period for 20 years. There were 580 deaths compared with 721 in the same period last year.
Traffic fell by 1% over the period, indicating that only a small proportion of the decline in fatalities was due to people driving fewer miles.
Research by the AA showed that 22% of its members said they had slowed down to save fuel and 42% claimed they accelerated more gently and avoided sharp braking.
AA president Edmund King said: 'These actions could have contributed to a reduction in deaths.'
