2017 Highway safety record improves for most
Distracted driving a major cause of accidents
The Quebec Minister of Transport, Sustainable Mobility and Transportation Electrification (MTMDET), André Fortin, and the President and CEO of the SAAQ, Nathalie Tremblay, released the Québec road safety report for 2017 on Tuesday in Quebec City.
The report indicates that the number of casualties decreased by 474 in 2017 over the year before. Over a five-year period, the road toll trend is improving, however, 2017 was a more difficult year in terms of the number of fatalities and serious injuries. Last year 13 more deaths were reported than the year before, and the number of seriously injured increased by 28 incidents.
Pedestrians accounted for 40 per cent of fatalities, almost a quarterof which occurred on the weekend. Distraction or inattention are blamed for around 35 per cent of those deaths.
The report indicates that the group people over 75 enjoyed the most improvement in terms of fatalities and serious injuries over the year.
For cyclists, the number of the seriously and slightly injured decreased by 2.1 percent and 5.4 percent respectively compared to 2016. The number of cyclist deaths, however, increased from 8 to 11 in 2017. In all, cycling victims are down 7.9 per cent from the average of the last five years. For 62.3 per cent of cycling victims, the incident involved a collision with a vehicle at an intersection. Nearly half (48.6%) of cyclist injuries and deaths occur during the summer, Distraction in all its forms is the main cause of accidents in 39.8 per cent of cycling victims.
Motorcyclists experienced a 9.3 per cent decrease in fatalities and a 3.0 per cent increase in serious injuries.
In 50.8 per cent of fatalities, the motorcycle was the only vehicle involved, compared to 30.5 per cent of the total number of non-motorcycle victims involved in a single-vehicle accident. Distraction, speed, and failing to yield are the main causes of accidents.
For pedestrians, the number of deaths rose 11.3 per cent (from 62 to 69), 25. per cent more than the 2012 - 2016 average. Once again, distraction in all its forms was the leading cause of accidents in 43.6 per cent of pedestrian casualties. In 65.4 per cent of cases, the pedestrian was crossing the road at the time of impact. Nearly half of pedestrian injuries and deaths (48.0 per cent) occurred in the evening and at night (between 4 p.m. and 4 a.m.)
The number of deaths of 15 to 24-yearolds
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increased from 46 in 2016 to 75 in 2017, while the number of serious injuries increased from 353 to 372 for the same period. One in five deaths in this group occurred between midnight and 4 a.m. and most accidents involving young people took place on weekends, in the summer, or in the fall. Speed or reckless driving is the leading cause of death s in this group (32.8 per cent).
Last month, the National assembly adopted several changes to the Highway Safety Code, including more severe penalties for impaired or distracted driving in an attempt to improve road safety.
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