Spain Hopes to Reduce Road Deaths by Half
December 31st, 2009
2009 is the sixth consecutive year there has been a decrease in the number of deaths by road traffic accidents, and the first to drop below 3,000 deaths, according to the Association for the Study of Spinal Cord Injuries (AESLEME), published in ‘ Balance of Road Safety 2009 ‘.
1969 was the first year on record where figures were released, with 3951 dead. Since that date, the year with the highest number of deaths occurred in 1989, with more than 7,000 fatalities.
If Spain can continue this trend, it would be close to meeting it’s European target for 2000 to 2010, which is to reduce the death toll by half – this entails dropping from the 5776 deaths in 2000 to 2,888 next year. Spain would then join the four other countries that have previously reached their targets: Luxembourg, France, Portugal and Latvia.
The data attributes these positive results to the introduction of driving license points, the criminal code reform, support from the media and civil society work, but stressed that there is evidence to overshadow the progress achieved and the fact that 25% of those killed were not wearing a seat belt and that 30% of those involved in the accidents tested positive for alcohol.
Looking to the future the study pushes for a commitment to education and prevention: working with children and young people at school, including mandatory lectures on road safety in driving schools and, also by conducting refresher courses for older drivers.
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