Filenews 22 November 2025 - by Ioanna Kyriakou
The gradual reduction in road fatalities in the European Union over the last decade is reflected in the data recently published by the European Parliament. Despite the fact that in 2024 about 19,800 lives were lost on the asphalt, this number is reduced by 3%, compared to the previous year. The numbers have been on a downward trend since 2015, when deaths on EU roads reached 24,358. A turning point was 2020, when deaths fell sharply to 18,830, a development mainly attributed to restrictions on mobility and passenger transport due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
However, Cyprus is heading for a sad record this year, since until 14/11/2025 we had 40 dead compared to 41 last year in 36 accidents. According to a previous report by filenews, 2023 was the year with the fewest deaths recorded since data is kept, with 32 fatalities with 34 dead. In 2022 we had 37 fatalities with 35 fatalities, in 2021, 44 fatalities with 45 fatalities and in 2020, 48 fatalities with 48 fatalities.
Road deaths by country, gender and age
The highest levels of road safety are in Sweden, with 20 deaths per million inhabitants, and Denmark with 24 deaths per million inhabitants. In contrast, the highest mortality rates in 2024 were recorded in Romania with 77 deaths per million inhabitants and Bulgaria with 74 deaths. The EU average was 44 road deaths per million inhabitants.
According to data from the European Parliament, men accounted for 77% of road deaths in 2023, which corresponds to three out of four deaths. At the same time, older ages appear particularly exposed. People over the age of 65 accounted for 31% of all road deaths in 2023, an increase from 28% in 2019, while they make up only 21% of the total population. At the same time, young people aged 18-24 accounted for 12% of road accident victims, while they constituted only 7% of the population. Around 52% of fatal accidents in the EU took place on rural roads, 38% in urban areas and 9% on motorways in 2023.
Which countries have a higher fatality rate
The highest rate of fatal road collisions is recorded in Eastern Europe. As Eurostat announced last week, Severozapaden, Bulgaria, recorded the highest rate in the EU, with 166 road deaths per million inhabitants in 2023. The neighbouring Severen tsentralen region also reported a high rate of 107 deaths per million inhabitants. It is followed by Greece and the regions of the Ionian Islands, with 120 deaths and the South Aegean with 119 deaths per million inhabitants. The fourth place is occupied by the region of Guyana in France with 117 deaths. Finally, the Sud-Vest Oltenia and Sud-Est regions in Romania record 107 and 102 deaths respectively.
The lowest mortality rates were recorded in the Région de Bruxelles-Capitale / Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest in Belgium with 5 deaths per million inhabitants, in Vienna, Austria with 6 deaths and in Berlin, Germany with 9 deaths per million inhabitants. It is worth noting that two EU regions did not cause any road deaths: Åland in Finland and Ciudad de Melilla in Spain.
Measures by the European Parliament to reduce traffic accidents
With the aim of bringing the number of road fatalities to 0 by 2050, the European Parliament approved on 21 October the introduction of stricter and more modern rules for European driving licences. The rules provide, among other things, for the setting of safe speed limits (30 km/h in residential areas), the introduction of digital driving licenses, the introduction of a probationary period for novice drivers, the right to withdraw a driving license in all member states in cases where the driver commits serious offenses and the inclusion of certain safety features in all vehicles. In addition, to make European roads safer, the EU has strengthened rules for road infrastructure safety management and is working to ensure common rules for self-driving vehicles.
