Introduction

In the last decade there has been an overall downward trend in the number of people killed in road traffic collisions on Scotland's roads. Despite some increases in 2016, 2019 and 2022, overall, there have been positive changes towards a reduction in fatal casualties. Unfortunately, 2024 saw a notable rise in fatalities and it is imperative that Police Scotland and partners work together to address this and reverse this trend.

Scotland’s Road Safety Framework 2030 (RSF2030) has a vision to have the best road safety performance in the world by 2030 and a compelling long-term goal for road safety where there are no deaths or serious injuries on Scotland’s roads by 2050. These outcomes align with the five pillars of the Safe System: Safe Road Use; Safe Vehicles; Safe Speeds; Safe Roads and Roadsides; Post-crash Response.

All road users are exposed to a variety of risks. The alignment of one or more risks can result in a collision. It is important, therefore, to understand the nature of collision causation, as it may be any combination of factors that result in a collision and any combination of factors that result in a fatality. A positive change in road users’ behaviour can reduce the severity of the collision or prevent it from happening entirely.

Working in partnership to achieve the RSF2030 vision, Police Scotland and Transport Scotland instigated road fatality research and in-depth analysis of all factors relating to road traffic fatalities on Scotland’s road network. The findings of the In-Depth Road Traffic Fatalities Report for the Years 2015-2020 were published on 25^th October 2023. Please note, one electric motorcycle has been included within the analysis.

Recommendation 73 within the report states that:

Further in-depth analysis should be undertaken on the currently available data set to identify trends and subsequent recommendations for pedestrians, motorcyclists, pedal cyclists and child fatalities.”

The number of motorcycle fatalities in 2024 indicates an increasing trend. In order to help address this, analysis has been conducted to:

• Identify fatal collisions involving motorcycle riders and passengers
• Identify the contributory factors that led to the fatal outcome of the collisions
• Identify the countermeasures that could have prevented the fatal collisions or reduced the severity of injury
• Explore road users in relation to specific contributory factors and countermeasures
• Make recommendations to assist in addressing identified themes and issues.

This report will focus on fatal collisions involving at least one motorcycle fatality during the reporting period 1 January 2015 to 31 August 2024.