The number of persons losing their lives on Belgium's roads in the first six months of 2024 was 198; this marked a 12% drop compared to the first half of 2023, which saw 226 traffic fatalities.
The number of accidents and injuries has also declined, according to the latest road safety barometer by the Vias Institute.
The road safety institute's statistics indicate a continuing downward trend in deaths since early 2023, especially on major highways.
“The number of highway fatalities has reached a record low,” the institute announced, with 23 deaths in the first half of the year, compared to 37 in the corresponding period last year. Vias attributes these positive results to increased use of section speed control cameras on Walloon motorways and the elimination of tolerance margins.
In Wallonia, road fatalities dropped from 100 in the first half of 2023 to 93. One person was killed in Brussels. However, the number of scooter and motorcycle riders dying on the roads has not decreased.
Nationwide, the number of accidents fell by 4.4%, totalling 17,157 in the first six months of the year, with 4,682 in Wallonia and 1,813 in Brussels. A small number of these accidents involved electric scooters, with incidents decreasing in Brussels (from 267 to 225) but increasing in Wallonia (from 100 to 110) and Flanders (from 382 to 388).
This indicates that electric scooters are now widely used beyond Brussels.
The number of persons injured was 21,002, a 3% drop.
