According to the traffic police, in March there were almost 9.7 thousand serious accidents, in which 903 people died and more than 12.1 thousand were injured. The first two indicators turned out to be about 8% better than last year, and the number of wounded compared to last March fell by more than 10%.

Among the individual indicators following the results of March, a sharp decrease in the number of accidents involving drunk drivers stands out. And if the number of accidents themselves and the victims in them decreased by less than one and a half times compared to last year, the number of deaths decreased almost threefold - from 220 to 79 people.

The situation with child mortality in road accidents has somewhat improved. In March 2020, 30 minors died on the roads, which is 25% less than a year earlier. The number of affected children decreased by more than 10%.

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  • © Vitaliy Ankov

Positive dynamics are noted in a number of other indicators.  

Despite the good March statistics, the results of the first quarter were disappointing for the traffic police.

Over three months, 32.5 thousand serious accidents occurred in the country, in which 3341 people were killed and almost 42 thousand were injured. And if the number of accidents themselves and the victims in them almost did not change, then the increase in the number of deaths is evident: in January - March 2019 there were less by 252 people.

The coordinator of the Blue Bucket community, Peter Shkumatov, believes that one of the reasons for the reduction in accident rates in March 2020 was the restrictive measures that began at the end of last month due to the coronavirus epidemic.

“They started only at the end of March, and earned full money already in April, so by the end of this month we will see a record decline in all indicators. If I may say so, hundreds of people who in a normal situation could die or suffer in road accidents will remain unharmed, as they will stay at home. But do not overestimate these figures and fall into euphoria. The decrease will be caused not by the fact that something has suddenly improved in terms of security, but by purely technical measures. Naturally, when the number of cars on the roads has decreased many times, mortality will also drop sharply, ”he told RT.

Commenting on the deterioration of mortality rates on roads in 2020, Shkumatov noted that they could be caused by an abnormally warm winter.

“It is known that there are autumn and spring peaks of accidents, when people are changing from one season to another and during this period of adaptation with unstable weather the number of accidents is growing. And we all last abnormal winter was, in fact, just such an offseason. When it’s warm and dry for 10 days, people instinctively relax and are not ready for a sharp change in the weather, ”he added.

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The expert noted that in Russia a huge impact on road deaths is exerted not so much by administrative measures as by the quality of cars.

“20 years ago we lost 30 thousand a year, although there were much fewer cars. Ghibli, because everyone went on the old "Lada". Now it is also visible in the Caucasus - there are not so many accidents there, but the consequences are often very serious, since many people cannot afford foreign cars and people die because they drive old or simply unsafe cars. And here, by the way, the coronavirus will probably have such a “return”, when millions of people, having lost their jobs or part of their income, refuse to purchase a new, safer car. Because accident rate is a derivative of a complex component formula, where many nuances play a role, ”the expert summed up.

Recall that due to the threat of the spread of the coronavirus of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia at the end of March, it made significant changes to the work of the traffic police departments throughout the country. To avoid the spread of infection, it was decided to minimize contacts with visitors. All employees were given masks; regular disinfection of the premises was also organized.

All controversial issues with motorists, including those arising after an accident, inspectors try to resolve at the scene. The traffic police also recommended that employees in the regions do not punish drivers for violating the ten-day period allotted by law for car registration. 

In addition, on April 18, Vladimir Putin signed a decree according to which a driver’s license expiring from February 1 to July 15 is recognized as valid until the end of this period. Similar measures were taken with respect to the passports of the Russian Federation.

Recall that in 2019, more than 165 thousand serious road accidents on the country's roads killed almost 17 thousand people, more than 210 thousand were injured.

Recall that in 2018, the Russian government approved a strategic plan to reduce road accidents, calculated until 2024. As a target, the mortality rate in road accidents is calculated based on 4 deaths per 100 thousand of the population per year. According to the document, the goal of the measures announced is “the pursuit of zero mortality” in 2030.