Fifty-two people have died in road accidents in the Balearics so far this year, one more than last year. In Majorca there has been a decrease in the number of deaths from 31 to 41. In Ibiza the number has gone up from seven to sixteen.
The national government delegate, Maria Salom, yesterday chaired the committee for traffic safety at which these figures were given out. Among measures proposed were an increase in monitoring and control for the most dangerous roads, the relocation and installation of speed radars, and more traffic police and controls for alcohol and drugs.
The head of the traffic directorate in the Balearics, Cristina Gago, pointed out that despite the increased volume of traffic, partly brought about by there being more tourists, the fatal accident rate has remained much the same in recent years. Nevertheless, "we will continue to work on reducing the number".
Fatalities on motorways and main roads have decreased from 44 to 40, while they have gone up from seven to twelve on urban roads. A significant increase in the number of motorcycles over the past ten years - there are 134,000 on the roads compared with 77,000 in 2007 - has led to a rise in the number of accidents and deaths.
Around 40% of people who have died this year tested positive for alcohol or drugs or both.
Two roads were singled out for having had the most fatal accidents: the MA-13 from the motorway into Alcudia and the main road from Alcudia to Arta in the Son Serra de Marina area. On these two roads there have been five accidents and nine deaths.
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