These results are contained in the road accident report on the continent for the first five months of the year, prepared by the National Road Safety Authority (ANSR) .

In the period under analysis, there were 9,297 accidents with victims, resulting in 131 deaths, 618 seriously injured and 10,826 minor injuries.

For ANSR, these results demonstrate “an improvement in the main accident indicators, compared to the same period in 2019", with 4,531 fewer accidents with victims (-32.8 percent), 63 less fatalities (-32.5 percent), minus 226 seriously injured (-26.8 percent) and minus 5,824 minor injuries (-35.0 percent).

ANSR stresses that the reduction in the number of claims stems from the decrease in traffic during the State of Emergency period due to the covid-19 pandemic that imposed containment measures since 19 March.

However, according to the report, the downward trend in claims had already been seen between 1 January and 18 March, a period in which there were 438 fewer casualties (-6.4 percent), 22 less fatalities (-22 percent), 42 less serious injuries (-9.8 percent) and 550 fewer light injuries (-6.7 percent) compared to the same period in 2019.

In the period in which the state of emergency was in force (19 March to 2 May), there was a “sharp decrease in all accident indicators”, namely 63.8 percent less accidents with victims, 48.7 percent less deaths, as well as less than half of the seriously injured (-57.0 percent) and 67.9 percent less minor injuries.

From the results of the first five months, the report highlights that 44.3 percent of fatalities resulted from crashes and that the collision between vehicles was the most frequent reason for the accident, having occurred in 50.9 percent of accidents with victims, 46.3 percent serious injuries and 55.8 percent of minor injuries.

However, compared to the same period last year, vehicle losses caused fewer victims: 17 fatalities (-22.7 percent) and 56 seriously injured (-19.0 percent).

In pedestrian accidents, there were four fewer deaths (-13.3 percent) and 89 less serious injuries (-48.6 percent) and in collisions, a decrease of 42 fatalities (-47.2 percent) and 81 serious injuries (-22.1 percent).

Most accidents (64.7 percent) with victims occurred in streets: 41.2 percent of fatal victims, 45.8 percent of serious injuries and 62.6 percent of minor injuries.

Compared to the same period in 2019, “the greatest decrease in fatalities, in absolute value, occurred on the national roads with 21 fewer deaths and highways (-16) and that of serious injuries in streets (-115), highways (- 37) and municipal roads, where there were 33 fewer deaths.

The report indicates that 61.8 percent of all fatalities were drivers, 21.4 percent pedestrians and 16.8 percent passengers.

In the case of seriously injured, the proportion of drivers and passengers was higher (65.9 percent and 18.6 percent, respectively), while that of pedestrians was lower (15.5 percent of seriously injured).

Also in this indicator and compared to the same period last year, there was an improvement in all categories of users, namely in drivers, with 49 fewer deaths (37.7 percent) and 125 seriously injured (-23.5 percent), and in pedestrians, who showed a reduction of 91 seriously injured (-48.7 percent).

Light cars were the ones that suffered the most accidents, with 75.9 percent of the cases, but they also registered the biggest decrease compared to the same period (-36.7 percent).

According to the available statistical data, in the first five months of the year, approximately 46.5 million vehicles were inspected, which represents an increase of 31.2 percent compared to the same period in 2019, with more than 530 thousand infractions detected , which represented a 3.0 percent reduction compared to the previous year.

The highest percentage of infractions detected by the authorities was speeding with 64.5 percent, and, according to the ANSR, there was “a decrease in all types of infractions that, in some cases, over 80 percent, as it happened with driving under the influence of alcohol, using a mobile phone and not wearing seat belts”.