It’s official, the Algarve’s EN125 road is the most dangerous in the country, according to the National Highway Safety Authority (ANSR), whose latest annual report identifies 50 accident blackspots in the country.The 2017 report shows 14 more blackspots on the nation’s roads than in the previous year, five of which are on the EN125 which runs from Vila do Bispo to Vila Real de Santo António.
A blackspot is declared when, within a 200 metre section of road, at least five accidents involving injuries have been recorded in a one year period.
In equal second are the EN12 in Porto and the A2 Autoestrada do Sul, with four blackspot points each.
The ASNR report states that 34,416 'accidents with victims' were recorded last year - an increase of 6.6% over 2016.
These accidents resulted in 510 fatalities, a concering increase of 14.6%. The data excludes people who died in hospital as a result of injuries received in road accidents.
The EN125 western section road upgrade was said to have been completed in July 2017, hopefully now fulfilling one of the promises that the ‘go-slow’ design would reduce the accident rate - time will tell.
The eastern EN125 roadworks are scheduled for sometime in 2019 and, in the interim, the road is little more than a series of potholes with vehicles often having to swerve to avoid damage to suspension.
Only €300,000 of a €1 million emergency road repair spend has been allocated to the eastern EN125, which will do little more than fix the very worst sections.
