The issue of road crashes on rural roads is not just a concern, it’s a pressing problem that demands immediate attention.

A new European report is calling for serious action to thwart the casualty figure realities.

An EU-wide policy needs to be developed and implemented.

United front

Onus is placed on national governments to make significant investments in improving the safety of rural roads.

It is regarded as a crucial step towards achieving the EU’s target of halving road deaths by 2030.

This has been outlined in the new report by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC).

The report shows that around 10,000 people died on rural, non-motorway roads in the EU in 2022 – accounting for around half of all road deaths.

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Separating fiction from reality

In the report are calls for the installation of side and central barriers, removing roadside obstacles and construction of separated paths for cyclists and pavements for pedestrians.

These are just a few of the recommendations for safer rural roads.

“Rural roads can and are being made safer with interventions that do not need to be costly,” said Jenny Carson co-author of the new report.

“With increasing focus on urban road safety, it is critically important that policymakers don’t forget rural roads where half of road deaths occur.”

Pudding proof

The report also includes examples of interventions that are saving lives across Europe.

France, Spain and the Belgian region of Flanders have reduced the speed limits across their entire rural road networks.

Sweden has invested heavily in ‘2+1’ roads, which introduce a central barrier and a safety-first design.

In Scotland, experiments with special road markings for motorcyclists to guide them through sharp turns, have achieved impressive results.

Meanwhile, in the West Pomerania region of Poland, 800 km of high-quality rural cycle routes have been built in five years.