The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) has made public the balance of fatal accidents registered in Spain during July and August, that is, the holiday months par excellence, in which the highest number of road trips is recorded. And the global data - still provisional because it only counts those who died in the 24 hours after the accident - is bad: a total of 234 people have lost their lives on the national road network this summer. These are seven more deaths than in the same period of 2022, although it should be noted that the number of long journeys in 2023 was significantly higher. 93.6 million rides were produced. This figure is 0.3% higher and becomes the highest recorded in the historical series.
According to the information offered by the organization headed by Pere Navarro, the fatal accident rate registered in these two months in our country has very similar characteristics to those of recent summers. In any case, unlike previous years, this year there have been no multiple accidents with three or more fatalities, and there have been several deaths at a level crossing.
If we look at the data on deaths by month, in July there were 112 fatal accidents in which 116 people lost their lives, which is 14 fewer than on the same 31 days in 2022. The day with the most deaths was Saturday, July 1 with 9; on the other hand, there were two days without deaths, Thursday 6 and Saturday 22 July.
For its part, in August there were 111 fatal accidents in which 118 people died, 21 more than in the same month of 2022. During this month there were five days in which 7 people left their lives on the asphalt and only one ( Tuesday, August 1) with 0 deaths.
Regarding the type of road, there was an increase of 17 people killed on highways and dual carriageways (in total there were 67). On the contrary, there were 10 fewer deaths on conventional roads. Despite the aforementioned reduction, roads without physical separation between the two directions continue to accumulate the highest fatality rate (almost 75% of those killed lose their lives on this type of road).
DGT data show an increase in deaths among the group of vulnerable users: 98 of the deaths -5 more than in 2022- were pedestrians, cyclists or motorcyclists. Of the 24 pedestrians who were run over, 14 were recorded on highways and highways and 10 on conventional roads. Half of them were run over during the night or at twilight, and only 2 of the 12 dead were wearing high-visibility reflective clothing, as specified in the Traffic and Vehicle Regulations.
The profile of the deceased motorist continues to be a man with driving experience between 35 and 64 years of age who has an accident on a weekend, on a conventional highway, due to the motorcycle he was driving leaving the road.
If we focus on the type of accident, leaving the road continues to be the accident that registers the most victims (41%) with 95 deaths, followed by the frontal collision (18%) with 41 deaths. It is important to note that there are still people who do not use security elements. Thus, 26 of the people who died driving in a car or a van were not wearing their seatbelts at the time of the accident -this represents 25%-. Nor did 3 of the deceased cyclists and 1 of the dead motorcyclists use helmets.
It should be noted that this year the number of deceased women has increased by 15. Specifically, 58 have claimed their lives, which represents 25% of the total deaths. By age group, the group with the most victims is the one between 45 and 54 years old (51 deaths, 7 more compared to 2022); The group that decreases mortality the most is the group between 35 and 44 years of age, with 16 fewer deaths.
Undoubtedly, the balance of fatal accidents this summer is negative, although it is acceptable to point out that there is a noticeable improvement in the accumulated figures for the year. Between January 1 and August 31, 739 people have died, that is, 19 fewer than in the same period in 2022. In any case, these figures are far from the objective of the Spanish Government, so there is still a long way to go . "In terms of road safety, we are not willing to take a step back in our commitment to reduce fatal and serious accidents by fifty percent by 2030," said the acting Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, during the presentation of the accident data for July and August.
According to statements made to Europa Press by the president of the DIA Association of accident victims, Francisco Canes, "the Directorate General for Traffic has run out of ideas for a long time, nothing is done other than what has always been done and there is to look for the formula to improve, to re-incentivize drivers and, in addition, for the Administration to improve the roads and, above all, to be at the foot of the canyon.In his opinion, it is necessary to "look for other policies", since the policies The current ones "are exhausted" and many are "simply marketing, campaigns that are then only partially fulfilled, because there are not enough means to carry out the surveillance that is sometimes advertised".
"It is time for a real turnaround and for things to start doing differently, with new ideas and not just putting the responsibility on the drivers, who are not the only ones who have responsibility in the case. of accidents," he warned.
Among the measures demanded by the association, it stands out that the Administration help to change vehicles "with more safety" -it must be remembered that the Spanish car park is very old-, improve the roads, install good guardrails or that the asphalt is in good condition . "There is a lot to do," he assured.
