Number and severity of car accidents in Romania, on the rise
The number of road traffic accidents in Romania is disquieting
Mihai Pelin, 05.08.2021, 14:00
Romania ranks first in terms of road accident fatalities in the EU, a Eurostat report has found. According to the European report, the lowest rate of road traffic fatalities caused in 2019 was reported in Sweden (22 deaths per million inhabitants), Ireland (29) and Malta (32), whereas the highest number of cases was in Romania (96) and Bulgaria (90), followed by Poland (77) and Croatia (73).
With the EU aiming to completely eliminate road traffic accidents by 2050 and to halve their number by 2030, the total number of people killed in car accidents in the Union as a whole was 51 in 2019. However, in Romania, in the first 7 months of this year alone, over 900 people have died.
The main 3 causes are the failure to adjust the speed to particular traffic conditions, jaywalking and pedestrians using the carriageways. Inspections found countless road infrastructure and signalling issues, such as absent or deteriorated road signs, damages in carriageways, including potholes and road bumps, inadequate signalling in crossroads, the presence of obstacles or vegetation affecting road sign visibility. A major problem is also the absence of separators on 4-lane roads to prevent vehicle crossovers and therefore collision.
This is a tragedy and there is no doubt that an important element is the lack of roads, president Klaus Iohannis said. People are extremely impatient all the time, and this is another factor causing all kinds of incidents, the head of state added. Iohannis concluded that legislation must be tougher, and drivers need to be more disciplined.
In a move to address the situation, the interior ministry plans to amend the Road Traffic Code and introduce tougher penalties. “Aggressive driving will thus entail a fine and a 120-day license suspension. Moreover, U-turns or driving backwards on a motorway, and crossing into opposing lanes will also be fined. A 90-day driving license suspension and a fine will also be introduced for the unjustified use of motorway emergency lanes.
The interior ministry is also considering revising the legal framework regulating driving license tests, so as to improve the theoretical education and practical training of future drivers. (tr. A.M. Popescu)
