Investment needed if Road Safety Strategy is to succeed

9 January 2026

The Government’s Road Safety Strategy 2026 will fail to deliver on its aims if it is not properly funded, says West Midlands Police Federation secretary Tim Rogers KPM.

Tim, who is the national Federation co-lead for roads policing, believes the strategy, launched earlier this week, includes sensible measures but insists the Government must set aside the resources required to ensure it succeeds.

“Roads policing has been woefully underfunded for many years now. Forces simply do not have enough dedicated roads policing officers to effectively police the roads and keep motorists and pedestrians safe,” he explains.

“Governments can introduce as many well-intentioned road safety initiatives and laws as they like but if they do not provide the money to fund officers to enforce these measures they are destined to fail.

“For example, the strategy sets out plans to lower drink-drive limits. This may well reduce harm on our roads but for it to have an impact we must invest in forces’ enforcement capacity otherwise there is a risk that we simply increase the number of drivers who choose to flee rather than engage. That will then directly increase the danger for police officers and members of the public.

“There is a growing gap between virtue signalling and delivery. Strategies talk about safety, but the system does not invest in the people expected to make that safety real.”

Tim stresses that he is not criticising the intent of the strategy but adds: “This is about being honest. As someone leading national Federation work on roads policing and driver training, I see daily the gap between ambition and delivery. Without investment in roads policing, training, equipment and legal clarity, backed up by coordination between the Crown Prosecution Service and the courts, even the right ideas will fail.

“There is a growing gap between aspiration and delivery. Strategies talk about safety, but the system does not invest in the people expected to make that safety real.”

Tim is currently leading a campaign for a change to Section 163 of the Road Traffic Act 1988 which would introduce a new power that would allow police to make people get out of a vehicle on request.

He argues that while officers can stop vehicles, the law does not properly support them to do so safely in modern road-side conditions with high-speed carriageways, distracted drivers and increasing hostility at the roadside.

Tim explains: “A power you cannot confidently enact is not a meaningful power. The message on paper is clear but the reality on the hard shoulder is nothing near to it.

“When officers hesitate because the law leaves them exposed due to uncertain powers, unclear guidance or inadequate backing, dangerous drivers stay on the road. That is how good intentions turn into poor outcomes.”

Tim says that if the Government is serious about road safety and Vision Zero, it must be honest about what works: properly paid and trained dedicated roads policing officers, backed by investment, not rhetoric.

“Without these, strategies are ultimately meaningless because the same tragedies will persist and repeat. The aims of the Road Safety Strategy 2026 are right. But success requires three non‑negotiables: targeted investment in roads policing, modernised training and technology and legal clarity that matches today’s roadside risks,” he explains.

“The Government must align words with means and measure success not by announcements but by fewer collisions, fewer serious injuries, and fewer bereaved families. That is the difference between aspiration and accountability, and the only route to safer roads in 2026.”