Southampton is named today as one of the UK’s worst performing cities for road safety – amid a rise in the accident toll across Hampshire.

The city has failed to cut the number of people killed or seriously injured on its roads as much as most other parts of the country, the Transport Select Committee has said.

In a hard-hitting report, the committee highlights the “shocking” latest figures showing the serious accident rate on Britain’s roads, which increased last year for the first time since 2003. This included a 22 per cent rise in the Hampshire County Council area and a 25 per cent increase in Southampton.

The MPs say vital road safety schemes have been cut by councils facing a squeeze on their budgets. They highlight the “variability” of performance between different local authority areas.

Their report lists the “worst performing areas”, comparing recent accident rates with the mid-1990s. Southampton was listed as the seventh-worst area, achieving just a 17 per cent reduction in the number of people killed or seriously injured on the roads.

Other towns and cities cut the rate by as much as 70 per cent.

Separate figures show the toll is not improving, with the numbers killed or seriously injured on the roads increasing from 123 in 2010 to 154 last year in Southampton – and from 598 to 722 across the Hampshire County Council area.

Across the country, the total went up by three per cent to 1,901.

Labour MP Louise Ellman, who chairs the Transport Select Committee, said: “We are very concerned that 2011 saw the first increase in road fatalities since 2003, with 1,901 people killed on the roads. It is shocking that road accidents are the main cause of death amongst young adults aged 16-24 and that so many cyclists continue to be killed or injured.”

The report calls for a string of measures, including more road safety campaigns, investigations into young driver training and a study into the effectiveness of 20mph zones.

However, Cllr Asa Thorpe, Southampton’s Cabinet member for environment and transport, said: “It is unfair and wrong to assume that local councils have a poor attitude to road safety. We don’t. We work hard with partners to maintain and improve road safety in Southampton. Our road safety initiatives are informed by the best national and international practice.

“While there has been a recent worrying upward trend in serious road injuries, this has to be seen in light of the previous ten years, where we had a very high reduction in casualties. Making further reductions in casualty rates on the back of significant past reductions becomes increasingly difficult but this is something that we are committed to.

“It should be recognised that, as well as the council and our partners playing our part, it requires greater levels of respect by all road users – whether they be drivers, cyclists, bike riders or pedestrians.”