site.btaBulgaria, Romania Record Highest Share of Road Accident Fatalities in 2023 in EU, EC Data Shows

In 2023, Bulgaria and Romania had the highest proportion of road accidents resulting in death in the EU, according to data presented by the European Commission on Friday. For Bulgaria, the rate is 82 fatalities per one million population, while in Romania it is 81 per one million.

The EC noted that in Bulgaria between 2022 and 2023 there has been a decrease in the number of road fatalities, but at the same time there has been a decrease in the size of the population, leading to worse statistical results. In 2023, around 20,400 people lost their lives on the roads in the EU, a decrease of 1% compared to 2022.

Compared to 2019 figures, the EU saw a decrease of 2,360 deaths (10%), but no decrease was recorded in Spain, France and Italy. An increase is observed in Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Sweden. In the last four years, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Hungary and Poland have come close to meeting the target of reducing road fatalities and serious injuries by 50% by 2030.

The safest roads in the EU are in Sweden (22 deaths per one million population) and Denmark (27 per one million). The EU average is 46 road deaths per one million population.

In 2018, the EU set a target to halve road deaths by 2030, the EC said.