A total of 591 people died on French roads during the summer of 2023 (July-August), or 50 fewer deaths compared to the summer of 2022, Road Safety announced this Thursday.
In August 2023, 286 people died on metropolitan roads, a decrease of 6% compared to the same period last year.
This drop follows that of July, when 305 people lost their lives, a decrease of 10% compared to July 2022. During the two months of July and August, the drop is 7.8% compared to the summer of 2022 .
Alarming figures for two wheels and EDPm
According to provisional estimates by the National Interministerial Observatory for Road Safety (ONISR), 1,386 people were seriously injured on French roads in August 2023, a decrease of 4% compared to August 2022.
Road Safety highlights “the high proportion of deaths on board motorized two-wheeled vehicles (30% of those killed this summer) and the increase in deaths in “motorized personal transport vehicles (EDPm)”, a category that includes scooters electricity, “with 17 deaths in two months.” A worrying figure considering that the balance for all of 2022 is 35 deaths.
“The summer report reminds these vulnerable users of the need to be vigilant and well equipped to stay protected and visible,” the press release states.
New rules for scooters
Road Safety recalls that on September 1, 2023, new regulatory measures relating to electric scooters came into force throughout France.
Among them, raising the minimum age to drive an electric scooter from 12 to 14 years and “toughening penalties for risky behavior by users.”
For the month of August 2023, the observatory counts, among other things, 32 dead pedestrians, 16 cyclists and 111 dead motorists.
In the overseas territories, the number of traffic accidents increased by 23% in August 2023 compared to the same period last year and 18 people died, an increase of 6% compared to August 2022.
Source: BFM TV
