Recently, the Road Police has released a statistics about the rate of serious accidents that occurred in 2013, and its results gave us food for thought. In a nutshell, young drivers (those in the 18-30 age group) caused twice as many serious accidents, with more deceased or badly injured passengers, than drivers over the age of 30. Even more concerning are the causes of these accidents, which are related, to a large and very large extent, to imprudent behavior.

Here are some numbers, in order to fully understand the situation:

• The weight of the age groups of drivers in the overall number of serious accidents registered in 2013:

• 16 - 30 years old: 37.4%
• 31-39 years old: 22%
• 40 - 49 years old: 17.9%
• On average, 14 out of 10,000 young driving license owners have caused serious accidents, while in the 30+ group, the average is of only 7/10,000.
• Each serious accident caused by young people resulted in 1.23 victims (dead or seriously injured).
  34.4% of the victims killed in the accidents caused by young drivers were passengers, while, in the age group 30+, the ratio is of 22%.
• The causes of serious accidents caused by young drivers are:
• Driving without a license - 58% of all cases
• Speeding - 53.9%
• Faulty overtaking - 44.8%
• Driving under the influence of alcohol - 39.8%

At the opposite end, drivers in Sweden aim for the absolute minimum in terms of road accident victims and maximum traffic safety. Initiated and approved by the Swedish Parliament in 1997, the Vision Zero project is based on the principle that it is not acceptable for people to lose their lives in road accidents. In this regard, ethical, responsibility and safety measures are applied and respected, and civil society and the authorities are actively involved in improving infrastructure and traffic safety.

Thus, in 2013, Sweden reached a record-number of 3 deaths in road accidents per 100,000 persons, while the European Union average was of 5.5, and in USA, it was of 11.4.

Some of the implemented measures aimed at reducing speed limits on several categories of roads in crowded areas, at modifying roads (adding special lanes for speeding, for drivers turning left), at achieving safe pedestrian crossings (at height, with additional signaling and retarders) and at harshening of the laws on alcohol consumption.

More details about this project and its implementation in Sweden, here.

Naturally, the experience of driving a car makes a difference between a road disaster and avoiding it. But the respect and responsibility towards the other traffic participants (either drivers, or pedestrians) and towards the passengers in your own car can do the same, regardless of whether you are 18, 25 or 40 years old. When you choose to drive a car, you need to be aware that things can get out of control at any time if you do not keep a close watch.

Be # responsible365, regardless of your age!