Road safety campaigners are calling on the Government to legislate to encourage higher road safety standards from UK businesses.

The call is being made by the Leaders for Life road safety at work campaign, which raised awareness for its message by taking a vintage Routemaster London bus to Westminster.

Latest figures from the Department for Transport show there were 1,793 reported road deaths in Britain in 2017, with one-third of fatal crashes believed to involve someone driving for work.

Martin Port, founder of Leaders for Life, said: “More than 500 people a year are killed in the UK as a result of crashes involving people driving for work.

“While responsible business leaders are already improving road safaety standards in their own organisations and we are in a position to be able to help them with that, we want Government to legislate to hold everyone who employs company drivers to the same high standards.

“The UK should be aiming to achieve the highest road safety standards in the world.

“Vehicle tracking devices should be compulsory for all vehicles used on company business, and all organisations employing people who drive for work – whether in a truck, company car or their own vehicle – should have a nominated director responsible for road safety policy and reporting on KPIs such as miles driven, speeding incidents and time and distance driven.”

Port is also CEO of BigChange, which developed Leaders for Life in partnership with road safety charity Brake to encourage business leaders to become ambassadors for safer driving in their workplaces.

He was joined on the bus by representatives from Brake, as well as racing driver Nic Hamilton (pictured with Martin Port), who is an ambassador for Leaders for Life.

Samuel Nahk, senior public affairs officer at Brake, added: “There are many things that business leaders can do to encourage safer driving at work.

“They can make sure drivers are not using their phones at work, that they are not exceeding the speed limit and that they are sticking to their working hours and taking the appropriate rest breaks.

“Leaders should also set an example to their people and make sure that everyone is working together to make our roads as safe as possible.”