02.04.2014
Newly-published figures have shown that member states are on track to meet the EU's target of halving road deaths between 2010 and 2020 if recent trends persist.
This was the second consecutive year that accident rates have dropped significantly, following a nine per cent downturn between 2011 and 2012. Overall, there has been a 17 per cent fall since 2010, which means around 9,000 lives have been saved in the last three years.
The UK was among the top performers once again, alongside Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden.
According to the latest figures published by the Department for Transport, there was a seven per cent drop in reported road fatalities in Britain in the year ending September 2013.
Unsurprisingly, there are great differences in road safety standards between certain EU nations. While there have been improvements in Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Greece and Poland, these countries still have a road accident rate that is far higher than the EU average.
The European Commission also voiced its concerns about the situation in Latvia, where the number of fatalities did not fall last year. There was also an upturn in serious collisions in Luxembourg and Malta, although the population in these two countries is so small that statistics can be easily skewed.
Despite this, Siim Kallas, EU commissioner for mobility and transport, was encouraged by the results, insisting that transport safety is a "trademark of Europe".
"I'm proud to see that the EU is fully back on track to reach the road safety target for 2020," he commented.
"However, there are still 70 people who die on Europe's roads every day, so we cannot be complacent. We must continue our joint efforts at all levels to further improve the safety on European roads."
Number Of People Killed On Europe's Roads Falls For Second Year
The European Commission has confirmed that the number of fatal accidents being reported throughout the EU fell by eight per cent in 2013 when compared with the previous year.Newly-published figures have shown that member states are on track to meet the EU's target of halving road deaths between 2010 and 2020 if recent trends persist.
This was the second consecutive year that accident rates have dropped significantly, following a nine per cent downturn between 2011 and 2012. Overall, there has been a 17 per cent fall since 2010, which means around 9,000 lives have been saved in the last three years.
The UK was among the top performers once again, alongside Denmark, the Netherlands and Sweden.
According to the latest figures published by the Department for Transport, there was a seven per cent drop in reported road fatalities in Britain in the year ending September 2013.
Unsurprisingly, there are great differences in road safety standards between certain EU nations. While there have been improvements in Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Greece and Poland, these countries still have a road accident rate that is far higher than the EU average.
The European Commission also voiced its concerns about the situation in Latvia, where the number of fatalities did not fall last year. There was also an upturn in serious collisions in Luxembourg and Malta, although the population in these two countries is so small that statistics can be easily skewed.
Despite this, Siim Kallas, EU commissioner for mobility and transport, was encouraged by the results, insisting that transport safety is a "trademark of Europe".
"I'm proud to see that the EU is fully back on track to reach the road safety target for 2020," he commented.
"However, there are still 70 people who die on Europe's roads every day, so we cannot be complacent. We must continue our joint efforts at all levels to further improve the safety on European roads."
Expert Opinion
Whilst we welcome these figures, there is more work that can be done to make roads safer for all who use them. <br/> <br/>“We continue to be contacted by people who have been injured or lost loved ones in road traffic collisions, both in the UK and abroad, as a result of lax road safety standards. <br/> <br/>“We believe that investment in road maintenance, safety precautions and increased training to raise awareness of the potential hazards for all road users will help the number of fatalities continue to fall and protect people from suffering serious, life-changing injuries.” <br/> Stephen Nye - Partner
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