Substantial investments in traffic enforcement and bicycle safety are necessary to reduce the number of road casualties.
The Road Safety Coalition is deeply affected by the enormous increase in the number of road fatalities. Statistics Netherlands announced today that there will be 737 road deaths in 2022, the highest number since 2008. This means that halving the number of road fatalities by 2030 is unfeasible.
Vulnerable road users such as (electric) cyclists are more often road casualties than before. But the number of fatalities among motorists has also increased. This is partly due to the increase in risky behavior in traffic. For example, the number of drivers driving under the influence of alcohol has doubled in the past five years. And the chance of being caught is small due to insufficient enforcement capacity.
In addition, the (electric) bicycle is being used more and more intensively, which is causing an increase in the number of fatalities and serious injuries.
Substantial investments in traffic enforcement and bicycle safety are necessary to reduce the number of road casualties. Thanks to the Road Safety investment impulse, 500 million euros has become available for improving the infrastructure. That is a step in the right direction, but not enough to turn the tide. The Road safety coalition therefore calls on politicians to take additional measures as soon as possible.
The cabinet has an ambition of 0 road casualties in 2050. However, this target is becoming increasingly out of reach. The decline in the number of road fatalities has been stagnating for years. Traffic accidents cause untold human suffering and cost society 27 billion euros annually, according to the ANWB (participant of the road safety coalition) on their website.
