In Kent more than 700 lost their lives or were seriously injured by road related incidents in 2022.
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00:00 The number of people killed or seriously injured on Medway roads jumped by 17% last year.
00:07 While in Kent it's dropped by 6%, locals argue this is still too many, with hundreds being impacted yearly.
00:15 This rose by 20% last year.
00:18 Which is why in Tunbridge, one resident and councillor is urging the need for more 20mph limits in the borough.
00:24 This is about education, recording the data, educating people that they are going over the speed limit.
00:32 Where it's been used elsewhere in Tunbridge, we've seen it is successful.
00:36 So we want to see speed watch teams across the whole town.
00:40 Now this road here is one of the roads in Tunbridge that they're particularly trying to get more people to come and join their community speed watch,
00:45 as it's a pretty busy road.
00:47 While most people do follow the speed limits here, the 20mph limit,
00:52 sometimes they've seen people going double the speed limit.
00:55 This increase is causing immense strain on emergency services.
00:59 People need to drive according to the conditions,
01:03 but really underlining to the public that there will be a strong enforcement focus for us.
01:09 These are the issues that most commonly result in death and serious injury on the road.
01:14 It's always a tragedy and will continue to be a priority for the force.
01:18 So far this year, Kent Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance Charity have treated more than 600 involved in road traffic collisions.
01:26 That's around 14 people a week.
01:29 If you're doing 20mph, it takes roughly three car lengths for your vehicle to stop.
01:34 At 30mph, that is even further.
01:38 And we know that the speed that a vehicle drives at has a direct influence on the level of injury,
01:45 and that you're far more likely to be killed or seriously injured,
01:48 even with that 10mph difference, because the speed of the vehicle transfers more energy into the object.
01:56 What we need to think about is actually our own behaviours,
01:59 perhaps leaving for our journeys slightly earlier, so that we don't feel the pressure to speed.
02:04 But some of this comes down to the condition the roads are in.
02:07 Between 2018 and 2022, Kent saw the highest number of pothole-related deaths.
02:13 So when the Prime Minister announced £8bn will be invested into roads across the UK,
02:18 this was widely welcomed by Kent County Council.
02:21 When it comes to the condition of the roads, we were absolutely delighted to see the government announcement
02:27 that for Kent will mean £134m over 10 years in terms of road condition.
02:33 And that is going to be really important because it means we can plan.
02:36 Resources will always be limited, but we can actually plan now to say,
02:42 this is how over a longer period, in a sustained and systematic way,
02:46 we can best deploy those resources to get the very best value in terms of being able to deliver better roads.
02:53 With thousands across the UK being the victims of road accidents every year,
02:57 emergency services and locals across Kent are urging motorists now more than ever to think before getting behind the wheel.
03:05 Sophia Akin for KMTV