631 crashes in a week, speed remains the main cause

Serbia’s traffic police directorate released its weekly road safety report on June 8. Over the previous seven days, officers logged 631 traffic crashes. Three people died in those incidents, while 328 others were injured.

Police single out excessive and inappropriate speed as the main factor behind both the number and the severity of crashes. It is a cause that sits at the top of the list week after week, regardless of the weather or the time of year.

What do the weekly figures show?

A tally of three dead and 328 injured across 631 crashes paints the picture of an average week on Serbia’s roads. Behind each number lies a concrete event, from minor collisions with no casualties to crashes with the gravest outcomes.

The traffic police directorate stresses that road safety in this period is better than in the same stretch last year. It is a figure the police read as a sign that drivers are slowly changing their habits behind the wheel.

Road safety in this period is better than in the same period last year, which suggests that citizens are becoming increasingly aware of the dangers on the road.

A drop in crashes compared with last year does not mean the risk has gone away. Speed still stands out as the cause of the most serious outcomes, so police warn that any progress can quickly be lost if discipline on the road slips.

The key numbers from this week’s report:

• 631 traffic crashes in total over seven days
• three people killed
• 328 people injured
• excessive and inappropriate speed as the main cause
• a better record than the same period last year

How can the risk on the roads be reduced?

Police are urging drivers to respect speed limits, because speed most often decides whether a crash ends in property damage or in casualties. A difference of a few dozen kilometres per hour is frequently the gap between stopping in time and a heavy impact.

The appeal also covers the compulsory use of seatbelts, in every seat in the vehicle and not only in the front. The belt remains the simplest protective measure, one that in more serious crashes directly cuts the number of dead and gravely injured.

Police place particular weight on adjusting driving to road conditions. A forecast turn for the worse in the weather raises the risk further, as rain, reduced visibility and a wet surface lengthen stopping distances and weaken control of the vehicle.

Driving adapted to conditions means lower speeds on wet roads, greater distance between vehicles and full attention from the driver. Combined with staying sober at the wheel, these measures cover most of the causes of serious crashes on Serbia’s roads.

Do you think more frequent speed checks on the roads would further reduce the number of crashes?