What is the Ontario Road Safety Annual Report (ORSAR)?

Learning from collisions is one of the key ways the Ministry of Transportation implements new and innovative ways to save lives and reduce injuries on our roads. Taking steps before tragedies can occur is what this document – The Ontario Road Safety Annual Report (ORSAR) – is all about.

ORSAR is a comprehensive yearly review of road safety figures and statistics for the Province of Ontario. For more than 50 years, Ontario has collected major road safety statistics and tracked and recorded long-term trends in road safety, including:

• Fatalities and injuries among drivers, passengers and pedestrians
• Collision rates
• Collisions involving drinking and driving, speeding, novice and senior drivers, large trucks, etc.

The report is compiled from information in motor vehicle collision reporting forms filled out by police officers across Ontario, along with information from the Office of the Chief Coroner, Statistics Canada and other ministries and agencies within the government of Ontario.

The information provides a useful, annual report card on the safety of Ontario’s roads in comparison with other jurisdictions and helps the ministry distinguish between short-term fluctuations and long-term trends in road safety. Being able to identify issues as they develop helps the ministry and its partners to respond quickly and effectively to the most serious threats to safety on our roads.

For example, by analyzing the results of ORSAR, we can target emerging trends in unsafe driving behaviours; rising rates of collision among certain classes of vehicles; growing risks associated with specific categories of drivers; and areas where the Province may need to strengthen its road safety laws.

At the Ministry of Transportation, we believe that a safe, efficient and seamlessly-integrated transportation system is a key to our way of life and our economic prosperity. Millions of people rely on Ontario’s highways, roads and transit systems including GO Transit, to get to their destination safely and on time. At the same time, thousands of businesses depend on the province’s roads and highways to move the more than $1.2 trillion worth of goods to domestic and international markets annually.

The ministry works to reduce preventable deaths and injuries on our roads through partnerships with our road safety partners and targeted action. In 2006, this action included the “One Person, One Seatbelt” amendment to the Highway Traffic Act, effective road safety programs and public education; increased funding for public transit to reduce congestion; forward-looking transportation planning; successful highway management and enforcement. As ORSAR 2006 shows, this multi-pronged approach ensures Ontario’s roads are among the safest in the world.

Key Road Safety Findings for Ontario in 2006

Ontario continues to make road safety a top priority, demonstrated by the many legislative, education and enforcement measures implemented to save lives and prevent injury. These initiatives are producing results.

Ontario’s roads rank as the safest in North America, with the lowest fatality rate of any Canadian or North American jurisdiction.

This ranking is based on the number of motor vehicle collision-related fatalities for every 10,000 licensed drivers. In 2006, the fatality rate per 10,000 licensed drivers declined to its lowest level on record in Ontario, at 0.87. Ontario’s fatality rate per 100 million kilometres driven also reached a recorded low, declining from 0.61 in 2005 to 0.59 in 2006, a drop of 3.7 per cent.

Because jurisdictions use different methods to estimate the number of kilometers driven, the ministry uses the fatality rate per 10,000 licensed drivers as the most reliable method when making comparison with other jurisdictions.

Based on the fatality rate per 10,000 licensed drivers in 2006, Ontario’s road safety ranking (1st) was well ahead of other comparable neighbouring jurisdictions such as New York (ranked 10th), Quebec (14th), Michigan (16th) and Ohio (19th).

Collision-related fatalities increased by 0.4 per cent in 2006 – from a record low of 766 in 2005 to 769. Over the long-term, there continues to be a positive downward trend as progress is made to reduce fatalities on the province’s roads. Between 1980 and 2006, the number of fatalities dropped 49 per cent.

In 2006, the number of serious injuries requiring hospitalization declined 0.6 per cent, from 3,619 in 2005 to 3,597. Minor injuries resulting from motor vehicle-related collisions that were seen in an emergency room declined for the fourth consecutive year, from 29,518 in 2005 to 28,876 in 2006, a drop of 2.2 per cent.

The number of licensed drivers increased from 8,762,210 in 2005 to 8,867,965 in 2006, the highest level ever in the province. At the same time, number of registered motor vehicles rose to unprecedented levels: from 7,854,228 in 2005 to 8,016,875 in 2006.

The number of fatalities involving drinking and driving increased from 174 in 2005 to 190 in 2006, an increase of 9.2 per cent.

While the number of fatalities involving speeding or loss of control of a motor vehicle decreased – from 366 in 2005 to 350, this improvement is tempered by the fact that these collisions continued to be a factor in nearly half of all motor vehicle-related fatalities in Ontario.

Collisions among the most vulnerable road users continue to be a serious concern for the ministry. In 2006, Ontario saw disturbing increases in the number of collision-related fatalities for pedestrians and cyclists. Pedestrian fatalities increased from 105 in 2005 to 126 in 2006, while fatalities among cyclists rose from 21 in 2005 to 32 in 2006.

An especially deadly year for motorcycle riders in 2005 (74 fatalities), was reduced to 53 fatalities. This number, while showing a positive year-over-year improvement, indicates motorcycle safety will continue to require significant attention as their use increases.

ORSAR 2006 also shows that Ontario continues to make progress toward achieving its targets under Canada’s Road Safety Vision 2010, a national goal of a 30 per cent reduction in the average number of road users killed or seriously injured during the 2008–2010 period when compared with 1996–2001 average figures.

Whether the data contained in ORSAR shows positive results or detects troubling trends where aggressive action is warranted, each number tells a human story. They serve as a reminder that while Ontario’s highways and roads consistently rank among the safest in North America, there is always more work to be done; more deaths, injuries and collisions to be prevented.

Number of Fatalities and Licensed Drivers: 1980–2006

Number and Rate of Major and Minor Injuries: 1980–2006