RSSRoad safety is again hitting the headlines worldwide, with new data showing accident reductions being achieved as well as highlighting areas for improvement. Several European nations showed major safety improvements. In Spain, the Home Affairs Office has published encouraging information revealing that the number of fatalities from car accidents fell in 13 out of the country's 17 autonomous regions during 2010. La Rioja region reported a drop of 47%, the best improvement in Spain, while the regions of Asturias, the Balearic Islands, Castilla y Leon and the Basque Country saw the number of fatalities rise by 12%, 10%, 8% and 2%, respectively. Murcia and Madrid also saw decreases of 27% and 22%, respectively, whereas Cantabria, Aragon and the Valencian region reported a fall of 17%. In total, 1,730 people died in car accidents in Spain in 2010, a drop of 9.1% compared with the previous year.
In France, fatalities on the country’s roads dropped below 4,000 in 2010. This represented a 6.5% drop from the previous year. Provisional data from France’s road safety department said that road accidents killed 3,994 people in 2010, down nearly 300 from 2009. After years of decline, road deaths reached 4,273 in 2009, stable on the previous year. In 2010 road injuries also fell to 79,056 people injured, a drop of 13.1%. Details from the862 Czech Transport Police reveal that 753 people were killed in car accidents in 2010, the lowest rate for 20 years. In 2009 832 people died in road accidents in the country. The Transport Police said that the figure could have been lower but there was an increase in deaths of pedestrians in November 2010 due to low visibility.
Similar gains were seen in both North America and Latin America. In the Canadian city of Quebec, car accidents in 2010 fell to the lowest level in five years. In the period from January 2010 to September 2010, the number of accidents dropped to 4967, down 27% from the same period a year earlier. There were 10 deaths, with 57 seriously injured and 1,040 experiencing light injuries. There were 9,163 accidents in 2009 and 9,867 in 2008.
In Nicaragua, official data shows that traffic accidents deaths and injuries dropped in 2010. Road traffic accidents left 562 people dead in Nicaragua during 2010, with a further 5,074 injured. The figures fell 6.48% and 8.14% respectively compared with the previous year. However, the number of road accidents increased by over 1,000 to 19,793. Drink driving, not using safety equipment such as seat belts and crash helmets and a lack of concentration on the road were the main cause for accidents. Just over the border from Nicaragua in Costa Rica, road fatality levels also dropped slightly from the previous year. Official data shows that there were some 287 fatalities caused by road traffic accidents reported in Costa Rica during 2010. This is the lowest figure since 2005 and fell by 28 from 2009. A total of 30 deaths were reported in Costa Rica during December 2010, while, 28 fatalities resulted from drink driving accidents, again a slight drop from the 35 reported in 2009.
Meanwhile in Asia road safety remains a problem. In Thailand, the authorities are introducing a campaign to promote crash helmet usage in 2011. The Thai Government has designated 2011 as the year to campaign for 100% of motorcyclists to use crash helmets. The Thai Public Health Ministry will be enforcing the law for motorcyclists to wear helmets. All state enterprises, state agencies and local administrators will require oblige the use of helmets by workers when travelling using motorcycles. Campaigns will be held by the Education Ministry for students in private and state-operated schools for promotion of helmet usage. All employers will be ordered by the Labour Ministry to promote helmet usage. This campaign follows the release of information showing that low rates of helmet use amongst young motorcyclists is a major cause of serious injury and death in Thailand. The survey, carried out by Bureau of Epidemiology of the Department of Disease Control, revealed that only 14% of young riders wear helmets and also found that only 23% of teen drivers fastened seat belts. The survey was carried out from 2005-2009 among 234,483 youths aged 16-17. According to the Thai Road Safety Centre, the major causes of accidents are speed (22%) and drunk driving (32%).
In France, fatalities on the country’s roads dropped below 4,000 in 2010. This represented a 6.5% drop from the previous year. Provisional data from France’s road safety department said that road accidents killed 3,994 people in 2010, down nearly 300 from 2009. After years of decline, road deaths reached 4,273 in 2009, stable on the previous year. In 2010 road injuries also fell to 79,056 people injured, a drop of 13.1%. Details from the
Similar gains were seen in both North America and Latin America. In the Canadian city of Quebec, car accidents in 2010 fell to the lowest level in five years. In the period from January 2010 to September 2010, the number of accidents dropped to 4967, down 27% from the same period a year earlier. There were 10 deaths, with 57 seriously injured and 1,040 experiencing light injuries. There were 9,163 accidents in 2009 and 9,867 in 2008.
In Nicaragua, official data shows that traffic accidents deaths and injuries dropped in 2010. Road traffic accidents left 562 people dead in Nicaragua during 2010, with a further 5,074 injured. The figures fell 6.48% and 8.14% respectively compared with the previous year. However, the number of road accidents increased by over 1,000 to 19,793. Drink driving, not using safety equipment such as seat belts and crash helmets and a lack of concentration on the road were the main cause for accidents. Just over the border from Nicaragua in Costa Rica, road fatality levels also dropped slightly from the previous year. Official data shows that there were some 287 fatalities caused by road traffic accidents reported in Costa Rica during 2010. This is the lowest figure since 2005 and fell by 28 from 2009. A total of 30 deaths were reported in Costa Rica during December 2010, while, 28 fatalities resulted from drink driving accidents, again a slight drop from the 35 reported in 2009.
Meanwhile in Asia road safety remains a problem. In Thailand, the authorities are introducing a campaign to promote crash helmet usage in 2011. The Thai Government has designated 2011 as the year to campaign for 100% of motorcyclists to use crash helmets. The Thai Public Health Ministry will be enforcing the law for motorcyclists to wear helmets. All state enterprises, state agencies and local administrators will require oblige the use of helmets by workers when travelling using motorcycles. Campaigns will be held by the Education Ministry for students in private and state-operated schools for promotion of helmet usage. All employers will be ordered by the Labour Ministry to promote helmet usage. This campaign follows the release of information showing that low rates of helmet use amongst young motorcyclists is a major cause of serious injury and death in Thailand. The survey, carried out by Bureau of Epidemiology of the Department of Disease Control, revealed that only 14% of young riders wear helmets and also found that only 23% of teen drivers fastened seat belts. The survey was carried out from 2005-2009 among 234,483 youths aged 16-17. According to the Thai Road Safety Centre, the major causes of accidents are speed (22%) and drunk driving (32%).
