More accidents but fewer deaths, is the summary for Safe Summer 2014 when compared to the figures from last year’s summer road safety campaign.
The numbers released by the GNR for the June 1 - September 15, 2014 period, are 20,915 road accidents, 539 more than in 2013, but with fewer deaths as only 110 lost their lives this year compared to 138 during the summer of 2013.
These Safe Summer operations have been run to “ensure the safety of all leisure activities” during the period of high traffic volume in the summer months and targets domestic holidaymakers and tourists.
There are rich picking too as this summer the GNR mounted 322,138 road patrols and fined or prosecuted 159,653 drivers with the income credited to the target set by the government for road fines.
Most motorists that were stopped and fined, or stopped and arrested, were over the drink-drive limit or were driving without a license.
The GNR managed to get through 353,861 breath-test kits and tested 264 drivers for drugs with only 45 returning a positive result.
In addition to fines for drink, and for license offences, 56,388 drivers were fined for speeding, 8,187 for not wearing their seatbelt, 3,419 for driving without vehicle insurance and 7,083 were fined for driving along with their mobile phones clamped to their ears.
GNR officers were especially unwelcome at the many summertime music festivals across the Algarve and were staked out at roads to and from many holiday destinations and along roads crammed with holiday traffic. This alone involved 14,995 GNR officers.
Comments
But this news must be good for the manufacturers of breathalyser kits.