The number of people injured on South Lanarkshire’s roads fell sharply last year, with total casualties dropping to the lowest figure since 2021. The encouraging statistics are contained in a road accident casualty report for 2025, which will be presented at South Lanarkshire Council’s road safety forum on June 16.
Total casualties for the year reached 286, a reduction of 92 compared to the previous year’s figure of 378. The report, by Kevin Carr, the council’s executive director of community and enterprise resources, states: “The year 2021 experienced the lowest number of casualties with 253. After two years of figures closer to 400, 2025 has seen a more positive downfall.”
Fatalities and Serious Injuries
Six people were killed on the region’s roads in 2025, down from eight the year before. This figure is below the five-year baseline average of 11.2 and close to the 2030 target of 5.6. Those killed included one pedestrian, one motorcycle rider, three car drivers, and one goods vehicle driver. Five were male and one was female.
Serious casualties also fell significantly, from 134 in 2024 to 107 in 2025. However, the report underlines that meeting the Scottish Government’s reduction targets and bringing that figure down to 68.5 by 2030 will be challenging, describing progress as “proving difficult.”
Child Safety
One of the most striking statistics in the report is that not a single child has been killed on South Lanarkshire’s roads for seven consecutive years. Serious child casualties rose slightly in 2025, up from 8 to 11, but remain well below the baseline average of 16.2.
Common Causes of Accidents
The report highlights that the four most common causes of accidents in 2025 were all down to driver behaviour and error: failing to look properly, careless or reckless driving, loss of control, and failing to judge another person’s path or speed. These were the same top four factors as the previous year.
Distraction in vehicles was cited as a causation factor in seven accidents over the three-year period from 2023 to 2025, resulting in three fatal collisions. This represents a disproportionately high severity rate worth noting given the relatively small number of incidents.
For younger drivers aged 17 to 25, careless or reckless behaviour was the most commonly cited factor, appearing in 28 incidents over the three-year period. The report says initiatives targeting this age group will continue to be a priority, in line with Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2030, which sets a target of a 70 per cent reduction in young road users killed or seriously injured.
