In 1950, there were approximately 1,000 road deaths. The number steadily increased to over 3,000 in 1972. From 1973 onwards, the annual number of road deaths has decreased gradually. Figures 10 and 11 show the number of road deaths registered by the police between 1950 and 1995, and the number of road deaths determined by Statistics Netherlands from 1996 onwards. In Figure 10, the road deaths are stratified by mode of transport and shown in shares of the total number of road deaths, and Figure 11 shows the number of road deaths per age group,
while also showing the development of the number of road deaths over time.
Figure 10. Road deaths in the Netherlands since 1950, by mode of transport (in shares of the annual total). Here, the (light) moped category also includes microcars, mobility scooters and disability vehicles. Sources: Statistics Netherlands (police registration up to and including 1975; Road Death Statistics from 1996 onwards), IenW (VOR, police registration between 1976 and 1995).
In 1950, particularly cyclists and pedestrians were killed in traffic. Then, the number of road deaths among moped riders and, above all, car occupants started to rise, which made these modes of transports more and more significant for the overall picture. Since 1973, the number of road deaths has decreased for virtually all modes of transport; an exception is the slightly deviating development for motorcycles and freight and delivery vehicles; in recent years, the number of road deaths among cyclists has also virtually stopped decreasing.
Nowadays, road deaths among children (0-14) are scarce: in 2021 - as in the year before - there were 17 road deaths in this age group. Between 1950 and 1980, youngsters and, above all, children accounted for a large proportion of the number of road deaths. Presently, older road users are the ones who are increasingly killed in traffic.
