Twice as many cars, far fewer accidents

The number of road traffic accidents has dropped by two-thirds since the start of the century

03.05.2023 - 06:12

The number of motor vehicles has more than doubled since the turn of the century, reports Statistics Faroe Islands.

In January 2000, just under 19,000 motor vehicles were registered in the Faroes. By 1 January 2023, this figure has surged to 42,000. This is an increase of more than 23,000, of which almost 14,000 were passenger cars.

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This increase has been proportionally greater than the population growth, with 3.2 people in the 18+ driving-age population per car in 2000 and two per car in 2023.

However, more cars have not led to more accidents, rather the opposite.

The start of this century saw an annual average of 1,200-1,300 traffic accidents. This figure has since been on a relatively steady decrease, reaching 461 in 2023. The lowest annual figure of 410 was registered in 2010.

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There are also fewer traffic injuries now. In the mid-00s, the annual number of accidents with personal injury was 60-70 up until 2008. The figure then dropped significantly and has since remained steady at 20-30.

Drink driving charges dropped from almost 200 in 2007 to 70 in 2017. This figure has, however, gone up again in the past 5-6 years, reaching 161 in 2022.