Safety in the city

With a newly published study, the European Transport Safety Council – a European organization that deals with transport safety – addresses the issue of road risk for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. This is a particularly sensitive issue in urban contexts, where these categories represent as much as 70% of road casualties. As the study highlights, there are significant differences between various EU countries. Romania holds the negative record, with 105 road users per million inhabitants killed each year in urban centers, four times the European average. The most virtuous is Sweden, with only 9 "urban" casualties per year per million inhabitants. Italy is negatively noted for the high number of deaths involving motorcycle and scooter riders; 28%, among the highest percentages in the EU. "In the next ten years," states Dovilė Adminaitė-Fodor, head of research, "the EU and all European countries must commit more to the safety of the most vulnerable road users. This is not just about making infrastructures safer, but about ensuring better enforcement of speed limits and combating distraction and impaired driving." Drive safely!