Transport Ministry calls for Labour Day driving caution

On the eve of the Labor Day weekend, the Ministry of Transport, Sustainable Mobility and Transportation Electrification is reminding motorists the importance of responsible and safe driving behaviour, especially in road construction areas where traffic conditions are altered. Road users need to be vigilant, especially when there are more people on the road, as will be the case this long weekend.

An orange colored signage advises motorists of the presence of obstacles to traffic and provides the necessary instructions. These signs must be followed, even in the absence of workers, since traffic conditions are changed and have unusual characteristics. Indeed, motorists must negotiate, among other things, narrower lanes, irregular pavement, the absence of shoulders and lane deviations. In these situations, speed reduction protects both construction

workers and motorists. Highlights • Drivers' behavior is responsible for a large proportion of accidents in work areas. • The main causes of accidents causing bodily injury are: - inattention and distraction (nearly half of accidents / 44 per cent) speed (one in five / 20 per cent);

- follow tailgating or following a vehicle too closely (one in five / 20%).

In a work area, the fines to which speeding drivers are exposed are doubled: After excess of 20 km / h: fine of $ 110; excess of 30 km / h: fine of $ 210; excess of 45 km / h: fine of $ 390. several consecutive years of awareness-raising, road safety as a whole has improved in construction sites. The number of accident victims, in particular, has decreased by almost half in the last six years, from 1,367 in 2011 to 735 in 2016. This significant drop in victims seems to indicate that drivers are improving their behaviour.