This year in Russia, four main traffic violations emerged as the leading causes of accidents. These were mismatches between speed and prevailing road conditions, breaches of rules for crossing intersections, driving in the opposite lane, and not maintaining a safe following distance. The information came from the TASS report based on data from the Main Directorate of Road Safety of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia.
From the start of the year, more than 19,500 crashes were linked to violations of intersection rules. This marks a 6.5 percent drop compared with the previous year. In these incidents, 845 people lost their lives and over 27,000 sustained injuries.
Approximately 9,500 crashes were connected to improper lane changes, reflecting an 8.7 percent decrease. Additionally, accidents attributed to drivers selecting an unsafe distance totaled about 11,500, showing a reduction of more than 9 percent.
The ministry noted that during the first eleven months of 2022, the overall number of traffic accidents fell by 5.2 percent. Likewise, the tally of deaths declined by 5.7 percent and the number of people injured decreased by 5.3 percent compared with the same period in the previous year.
Earlier reports indicated that traffic police inspectors would refrain from prosecuting drivers when traces of narcotic or non-psychotropic drugs were detected on the driver’s body. This policy shift was described as a consideration in enforcement approaches during roadside checks.