Increase in number of road deaths in 2015 : Analysis of developments and possible causes. In 2015, the Netherlands counted 621 road deaths, 51 (9%) more than in 2014. This is significantly more than was expected on the basis of the downward trend. The increase could mainly be observed to commence in the second half of 2015 and, according to the first data of 2016, the rise seems to continue during the initial months of 2016 and to stabilize thereafter. The number of road deaths is also increasing in other countries, but the increase in the Netherlands is relatively large. The Netherlands now occupies the ninth place in the EU ranking of countries with the safest traffic expressed in in road deaths per inhabitant. In 2010, the Netherlands were still in fourth place. Further analysis shows that the number of road deaths has increased especially: a) among car occupants and drivers of mobility scooters and (other) vehicles for the disabled, b) among males of all ages and females between the ages of 50 and 70 years, and c) on national roads and municipal roads. The increase in the number of road deaths may possibly partly be due to an increase in the mobility of inexperienced drivers; to some extent this is a result of economic recovery. Furthermore, the increase of the speed limit (in 2014) to 130 km/h on some motorway sections, the decrease in the number of drivers stopped by the police, and the growing number of mobility scooters may have played a role. For none of the explanations we examined, however, did we find conclusive evidence until now. Finally, there has been an increase in the use of mobile data usage. The extent to which this has also happened in traffic has not been investigated. If this were the case, it could also be a possible explanation.
Samenvatting