The past year has not always been full of good news, especially when it comes to road safety. Statistics show that the number of road accidents remains too high, which is a cause for concern.
– 2023 was another dark year for traffic safety Norwegian roads. The accident picture we have seen over the last two years is very worrying and shows that we need to step up our road safety efforts, says Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård.
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A disturbing trend last year and last year
As we read in the press release of the Norwegian government, according to preliminary data from the Norwegian Road Administration, 2023 people died on Norwegian roads in 118. This is two more people than in 2022, when 116 people died in road traffic in Norway. Moreover, in 2023, many people suffered serious injuries in road accidents. Final figures for seriously injured in 2023 are not yet clear.
– The development we have seen over the last two years is disturbing. After several years of declining road fatalities, the number has increased dramatically in both 2022 and 2023. While statistics show that Norwegian roads are the safest in Europe, this cannot be a time of complacency. We have no one to lose, says the Minister of Transport.
All fatal accidents are analyzed
All fatal accidents are investigated by the accident analysis group of the Norwegian Road Administration. Although the analyzes for 2023 are not ready yet, we see that the number of accidents involving young drivers, accidents involving heavy vehicles and accidents with several fatalities has increased. The number of accidents involving motorcycles remains consistently high, with 2023 deaths in 20. Nearly half of fatal accidents last year were head-on collisions.
They were recently published analysis of the causes of fatal accidents in 2022. They show that road accidents are complex and that only one cause can rarely be identified. However, analyzes show that the two main causes are driver errors resulting from inattention or risky behavior.
– It's easy to be tempted to do something other than driving, but lack of attention is responsible for a third road accident fatalities. When we get behind the wheel, we are responsible for both our own safety and the safety of others, and the main focus should then be on driving, says Nygård.
Intensifies work to achieve vision zero
– My thoughts go to the relatives who lost loved ones in road accidents last year and to those who were injured. Traveling on Norwegian roads must be safe, says Nygård.
A vision of zero deaths and serious injuries continues to guide road safety work in Norway.
– Work on road traffic safety is carried out systematically, purposefully and well by many different entities and has been carried out for several decades. This work should continue in 2024, while at the same time increasing our road safety efforts. We still have a long way to go to achieve our goals with zero vision, says Nygård.
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Source: Norwegian Road Administration
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