Road traffic accidents involving personal injury, December 2001

The reduction in accidents involving lorries must be seen in relation to the reduction in the total number of road traffic accidents in 2001. The number of accidents involving lorries in relation to the total number of road traffic accidents in Norway has barely changed in the last five years. The same goes for the number of persons killed and injured in accidents involving lorries.

The average figures for the period 1996-2001 show that lorries were involved in 3 per cent of the total number of road traffic accidents. In the same period, the share of persons killed in accidents involving lorries was 11 per cent in relation to the total number of fatalities in Norwegian traffic, while the share of injuries in accidents involving lorries was 3 per cent.

29 persons killed

29 persons were killed in accidents involving lorries in 2001, 12 fewer than in the previous year. Of the 29 fatalities, 20 were drivers of automobiles, five were passengers of automobiles, three were motorcyclists and one was a pedestrian.

... and 332 injured

332 persons were injured in accidents involving lorries last year. 46 of these were dangerously or seriously injured, while 286 persons were slightly injured. In 2000 the corresponding number of injuries was 376. The figures for the period 1992-2001 show a yearly average of 34 persons killed and 332 persons injured in accidents involving lorries.

Head-on accidents

90 of the total number of accidents involving lorries in 2001 were head-on accidents with other vehicles, which is a share of 35 per cent of the accidents. Looking at the total number of road traffic accidents in 2001, such accidents accounted for 14 per cent of the accidents. 22 persons were killed and 105 injured in head-on accidents with lorries on Norwegian roads in 2001.

Vehicles running off the road

There were 62 so-called single accidents involving lorries in 2001, which is accidents were other vehicles were not involved. 55 of these were caused by single vehicles running off the road, about the same figure as the last four years. Two persons were killed and 58 injured in accidents involving single lorries running off the road in 2001.

Many fatalities during summer

There were 27 accidents involving lorries in September, the highest number of accidents in any single month of 2001. However, the number of fatalities was higher in the months of May, June and July, when 4, 5 and 5 persons were killed, respectively.

Tables:

• Table 1 Accidents involving lorries. Persons killed or injured, by degree of injury. 1990-2001
• Table 2 Accidents involving lorries. Number of traffic units involved and persons killed or injured. 1999-2001
• Table 3 Accidents involving lorries. Persons killed or injured, by county. 1999-2001
• Table 4 Accidents involving lorries. Persons killed or injured, by month 1999-2001
• Table 5 Accidents involving lorries. Number of people killed or injured, by mode of transport and type of accident. 2001