Roadside obstacles blamed for 30% deaths on Belgian roads

Roadside obstacles blamed for 30% deaths on Belgian roads
© Belga

The number of road deaths following a collision with an obstacle at the edge of the road represents 30% of the total number of fatal accidents to occur in 2018, Touring stated on Tuesday, basing its figures on information from SPF Économie and StatBel.

The mobility organisation is calling for more investment in making roads safer.

Collisions with obstacles are in the first place when it comes to serious and fatal consequences resulting from road accidents, in front of lateral collisions at intersections and head-on collisions, Touring states.

According to the most recent figures, 178 road deaths out of the 568 recorded in 2018 were caused by such obstacles. "It concerns an increase of 3% compared to last year, whereas the total number of deaths is going down," the organisation regretted. Trees make up 23% of the deadly obstacles, ahead of lampposts (20%) and bollards (12%).

Touring emphases that adapting infrastructures could bring down the number of serious accidents in the vicinity of trees and buildings, notably by building shock-absorbing posts and fixed crash barriers. "The adjustments (to be made) are easily seen as soon as there is a serious accident analysis," the mobility organisation added. "Death on the roads is not to be remedied solely through awareness campaigns, control and crackdowns."

The Brussels Times


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