Much fewer road deaths in Brabant, but more accidents with e-bikers

The number of road fatalities in the Netherlands fell most sharply in Brabant in 2020. The number of road deaths fell from 142 in 2019 to 99 in 2020. Despite the major decline, Brabant remains the province with the most road deaths.

Nationally, a total of 610 people died in traffic last year. North Holland, Gelderland and South Holland are closely following Brabant. The fewest road deaths occurred in the province of Flevoland. This is evident from figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics.

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Downward trend
The sharp drop in the number of road deaths in Brabant is striking. In 2018, our province still had 150 road deaths. That number already fell slightly to 142 in 2019, and that trend continued last year when 99 deaths were registered.

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Provincial administrator Christophe van der Maat: “Last year I expressed the hope that the number of accidents would drop sharply in 2020, fortunately that has come true. This positive development is good news, but I keep repeating it: every road death is one too many. The ambition remains unabated to zero road casualties and we are working hard on that. ” It is not clear why there has been a decline, which could partly be due to less traffic as a result of the corona crisis.

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Incidentally, the Institute for Road Safety Research is still conducting an investigation into the fatal accidents in Brabant in 2018 and 2019. The results may come in the spring. The Southern Court of Audit is also investigating road safety in Brabant.

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More men than women
Nationally, 610 people died in a traffic accident last year. That is 51 fewer than in 2019. Viewed nationally, it is the lowest number since 2015. A total of 453 men and 157 women were killed in traffic.

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The most road fatalities occurred among cyclists: 229. This is the highest number of cycling casualties in 25 years. One in three crashed cyclists was riding an e-bike. In a response to these figures, the Brabant spokesman for the Fietsersbond, Aad Smid, said that ‘every victim among cyclists and in traffic in general is one too many.’ He also reports that he is pleased that there will be better cycle paths and fast cycle routes.

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Smid is also pleased with measures that have been or are being taken to make curbs safer, for example. He points to edge markings that are being applied and, as he puts it, forgiving bike paths with a sloping edge and less chance of falls. In addition, the Fietsersbond continues to work for even more safety for cyclists, such as lowering the maximum speed and increasing the supervision thereof.

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Rise during lockdown
The increase in the number of road deaths during parts of the lockdown was striking. In March and April 2020 it was least busy on the road. In these periods there were more road deaths while there was less traffic:

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