Number of EU road deaths falls again

brussels/valletta - The number of road deaths in the EU fell by 2 percent last year to 25,500. The number of seriously injured was 135,000, the European Commission reported Tuesday.

In 2015 were still 26 100 people in traffic accidents in the 28 EU countries. That was half a percent more than in 2014, thus ending a long decline. That trend is now reversed again.

Compared to 2010, there were approximately 19 percent less fatalities, but the goal of halving the number of victims in 2020 is still far away. 'Today again seventy people will lose their lives on roads in the EU, and fifteen times as many will suffer serious injuries,' said EU Transport Commissioner Violeta Bulc.

The Netherlands is one of 33 victims per million inhabitants after Sweden and the United Kingdom to the traffic safest countries, followed by Spain, Denmark, Germany and Ireland. Bulgaria and Romania join the rankings, with 99 and 97 deaths per million inhabitants respectively.