Ecuador’s worryingly high fatal crash rate

Ecuador’s shocking high road fatality rate is giving cause for concern. Official statistics compiled by the World Health Organisation (WHO) suggest that Ecuador is second only to Venezuela in Latin America with regard to fatalities on the road network. The WHO figures show that Ecuador has an average of 28 deaths/100,000 inhabitants from road crashes, well above the global average of 18 deaths/100,000 inhabitants. Only Venezuela’s even more startling figure of 37 deaths/100,000 inhabitants is higher in Lati
June 21, 2013 Read time: 2 mins
Ecuador’s shocking high road fatality rate is giving cause for concern. Official statistics compiled by the 3263 World Health Organisation (WHO) suggest that Ecuador is second only to Venezuela in Latin America with regard to fatalities on the road network. The WHO figures show that Ecuador has an average of 28 deaths/100,000 inhabitants from road crashes, well above the global average of 18 deaths/100,000 inhabitants. Only Venezuela’s even more startling figure of 37 deaths/100,000 inhabitants is higher in Latin America. The report is based on 2010 data however and Justicia Vial, believes that the figure would be 32.4 deaths/100,000 inhabitants in Ecuador and 23 deaths/100,000 inhabitants as the average for Latin America if more recent statistics were used. Injuries from road traffic crashes are the main cause of death for children aged 5-14 and the second highest cause of death for people aged from 15-44. Ecuador's National Transit Agency (ANT) has also revealed that 50.09% of accidents could be attributed to either inexperience or careless driving. A further 13.2% are caused by a disregard for regulations, 12.31% by excessive speed, 9.73% by drinking, 7.69% by external conditions and 6.99% by the carelessness of others. The toll is particularly heavy on pedestrians, motorcyclists and cyclists and the latest information shows that the risk is by no means abating, with 308 people killed in road traffic crashes between January and February 2013. 

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Road safety concern for the UK
    July 24, 2020
    Road safety concern for the UK with an increase in fatalities.
    Read More
  • Road causalities dropped in Europe in 2012
    March 26, 2013
    The latest data from the European Commission reveals that road fatalities across the EU decreased by 9% in 2012. This shows that 2012 saw the lowest numbers of people being killed in road traffic crashes in EU countries since data first began being collated. Vice-president Siim Kallas, Commissioner for Transport, said, "2012 was a landmark year for European road safety, with the lowest ever number of road deaths recorded. A 9% decrease means that 3,000 lives were saved last year. It is hugely encouraging to
    Read More
  • Vietnam’s high crash rate
    April 19, 2016
    Vietnam’s road crash rate is still too high and causing concern. Recent measures such as requiring motorcycle riders to wear helmets have helped reduce the country’s death toll on its roads, but the casualty statistics are still a major issue. The official data from the National Traffic Safety Committee in Vietnam shows that there were around 5,000 crashes recorded in the first quarter of 2016. These crashes injured over 4,500 and killed close to 2,200 people. The police also fined the drivers of over 909,0
    Read More
  • Vulnerable road users face greater risks on Europe’s road network
    May 21, 2014
    Data shows that vulnerable road users are benefiting less from improved road safety. This has been revealed in the 2014 Road Safety Annual Report, which highlights latest road safety data. The number of road fatalities fell by 1.7% between 2011 and 2012 in the 31 countries covered by the International Road Traffic and Accident Database (IRTAD), according to the International Transport Forum at the OECD. However, road safety policies are not succeeding in improving protection for vulnerable road users. The l
    Read More

Highlighted Content