Continued improvement in Swedish road safety

Sweden’s road safety continues to improve as highlighted by the latest official statistics. These show that a 9% drop in road fatalities for 2013 compared with the previous year. In all 260 people were killed in road crashes on Sweden’s roads during 2013. The official data was compiled by Trafikanalys and to put this in context, Sweden’s rate of road-related fatalities is now at its lowest level since 1944. It is worth noting that in 1944, there were comparatively few registered motor vehicles in Sweden whi
April 11, 2014 Read time: 2 mins
Sweden’s road safety continues to improve as highlighted by the latest official statistics. These show that a 9% drop in road fatalities for 2013 compared with the previous year. In all 260 people were killed in road crashes on Sweden’s roads during 2013. The official data was compiled by Trafikanalys and to put this in context, Sweden’s rate of road-related fatalities is now at its lowest level since 1944. It is worth noting that in 1944, there were comparatively few registered motor vehicles in Sweden while wartime fuel shortages meant that distances travelled were very low. Bearing in mind the massive increase in vehicle ownership and huge jump in total distances travelled, this drop in fatalities is extremely significant. But the reasons for this drop in fatal crashes have not been revealed and until this information is available, any benefits of best practice methodology for road safety to help other European nations will be limited. Sweden has consistently had one of the best records on road safety of any country in the world over a period of years. Penalties for driving offenders are tough and enforcement measures are regular and consistent.

Related Content

  • Distracted driving from smartphone use poses a major road safety threat
    December 10, 2013
    Cell phone use while driving is not appreciated amongst drivers for the risk it presents. And with people growing ever more reliant on smartphones and other hand-held devices, the issue of distracted driving looks set to increase. Automotive manufacturers are installing wifi and other technologies in new generation vehicles in a bid to broaden market appeal, particularly to younger drivers. But it seems little thought has been given to the safety risks these pose should drivers attempt to use them when behi
    Read More
  • Infrastructure investment will help construction jobs
    February 23, 2012
    The construction equipment manufacturing industry has been hit hard by the recession worldwide. Profits for 2009 reveal the sharp drop in business that began escalating around the globe during the third quarter of 2008. The problems have been most acute in the market for compact utility equipment
    Read More
  • US road safety concern at higher crashes
    October 13, 2017
    Concern has been expressed at the increase in road deaths in the US. There were 37,461 road deaths on US roads in 2016, an increase of 5.6% from 2015. The data comes from the US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The NHTSA data was collected from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It also shows that the vehicle distance travelled on US roads in 2016 increased by 2.2%.
    Read More
  • Germany's worrying road safety issue
    May 14, 2012
    The latest data from Germany's Federal Statistics Office, Destatis, reveals a worrying increase in road related fatalities in the first three quarters of 2011. The death rate on the country’s roads rose by 5.9% to 2,938 for the period in comparison with 2010. However, the overall number of road accidents reported by the German police dropped by 1.4% to 1.71 million. These are preliminary figures and final data has still to be made available but the news of the increasing death rate gives major cause for con
    Read More

Highlighted Content