Filenews 3 October 2025 - by Michalis Chatzivasilis
Terrible things are happening on Cypriot roads, since Cypriot drivers break the law with all ease, while fines are raining down from the Traffic Police.
In a five-year period, from 2020 to 2024, 445,976 drivers were reported, of which 4,975 were taken to court for serious traffic violations. And in this half a million or so out-of-court documents, those of the cameras are not included. Most of the complaints concern exceeding the speed limit, while the five thousand drivers who were reported because they tested positive for drug use while driving are shocking.
Most drivers who were under the influence of drugs were caught in Paphos (one in four who was reported).
From the data presented to the Parliament, following a question by DISY Famagusta MP Nikos Georgiou, the Minister of Justice Marios Hartsiotis, it appears that the Traffic Police campaigns and checks on a regular basis also show the extent of illegality on the roads.
Especially the violation of the speed limit is first by far since in the five-year period 2020 - '24 350.235 complaints were made by drivers, most of them by the members of the Traffic Department of the Headquarters, who issued 165.876 out-of-court notices after recording through radar the violation of the limit. In the cities, most complaints were made in Larnaca, after 60,782 violations were recorded, followed by Famagusta with 39,414 out-of-court notices.
The 16.988 complaints about drunk drivers, during the aforementioned period, are also sensational, with the most, i.e. 3.724, being made by members of the Traffic Headquarters, while in the districts, the most complaints were made in Limassol with 4.874, followed by Paphos with 3.206.
Illegal use of a mobile phone while driving (hands-free legislation), which is one of the main causes of fatal road collisions, shows an increase in out-of-court notices despite the fact that this violation is punishable by €150 for the first time.
Specifically, in the past five years, 37,619 complaints were made by drivers for mobile phone use, with 21,170 made by members of the Traffic Headquarters, while in the districts, the most, 6,216, were made in Limassol, followed by Nicosia with 4,819.
The non-application of the seat belt is another cause that leads to the death of our fellow human beings, which is why the Traffic Police pays special attention to this offense. According to Police data, a total of 37.174 complaints were made for not using a zone, of which 20.141 were from members of the Traffic Headquarters, while in the provinces the first in complaints with 4.468 is Famagusta.
For the offense of driving under the influence of drugs, which cannot be regulated out of court but cases are registered in the courts, the data also show the magnitude of the problem on Cypriot roads: From 2020 to 2024, 4,975 complaints were made, of which 2,872 were from members of the Traffic Headquarters and the rest in the provinces. In Paphos, 979 drivers were found positive for drug use, 521 in Limassol, 278 in Famagusta, 185 in Larnaca, 126 in Nicosia and 14 in Morphou.
According to the Chief of Police, the goal is to carry out more intense and targeted policing campaigns, focusing on high-risk groups. Indicatively, during this period, a campaign with road inspections of two-wheeler, tricycle and quadricycle riders is underway.
