International road safety improved generally in 2022 compared with the pre-pandemic years.

This is the conclusion of a new survey from the International Traffic Safety Data and Analysis Group (IRTAD).

Although casualty rates were actually higher in 2022 than in 2020 and 2021, the reduced traffic volumes over the pandemic period skewed the figures.

Ups and downs

Preliminary data for the first six months of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021 shows that 14 of the 20 countries surveyed saw increased road deaths.

However the majority of countries witnessed lower road deaths in 202 than in 2019. The data reveals that road deaths are 12% lower in the first six months of 2022 than in 2017, 2018 or 2019.

Traffic volumes increased in 2021 compared to 2020, but were still lower than in 2019. IN franc and Germany, traffic volumes in 2021 were down 9% on 2019.

America struggling

However, the US is a picture of concern. Road deaths increased by over 16% in 2021 compared to the average for 2017 – 19. This in turn had an effect on the overall IRTAD data. For the rest of the 34 nations in the survey, road deaths decreased by 12.4% in 2021.

Compared to the average over 2010 – 2019, where the average was just a 2% drop, the new figures represent a big improvement.

Particular improvements were witnessed in Argentina with a drop of 27%, Japan down 23% and South Korea 23%