Let’s make our roads safer for all

Why is this important?

Vehicle collisions with animals not only lead to the death of the animal in most cases but can also cause serious human injuries as well as high financial costs.

While we build more and more roads across Europe, the number of such accidents is growing. In Spain, road accidents involving animals have doubled in just five years. [1] In Sweden, roadsides are turning into “animal graveyards” with over 10,000 reindeer killed just between 2018 and 2023. [2] Some species are being driven toward extinction because of road traffic. A 2020 study estimated that 194 million birds and 29 million mammals die annually on Europe’s roads. [3]

We could prevent many of these accidents if we improve our road infrastructure. Part of the solution is to create more wildlife corridors which allow animals to cross roads safely. Wildlife corridors can help boost biodiversity and animal populations because they link isolated areas of wild nature and allow for the migration of species. [4] But they also make roads significantly safer for people. In some cases, the introduction of wildlife bridges over busy roads has resulted in 85 to 99% reduction in collisions. [5]

In its EU road safety policy framework 2021-2030, the European Commission has included a strong commitment to reduce deaths and serious injuries on EU roads by 50% by 2030 and to get close to zero deaths and serious injuries by 2050. [6] 

While the EU has taken various measures with the aim of increasing road safety [7], it has failed to adequately address the issue of vehicle collisions with animals which pose a threat to both animals and humans. Let’s push our representatives to treat this issue seriously and make our roads safer for all living beings!

References: