Road safety

Traffic regulations will be in place in Athens on Thursday, due to the celebration of the city’s patron saint and the procession of the Holy Icon of St. Dionysius of Areopagitos.

Since the beginning of the year, Bulgaria has witnessed a staggering 5,389 traffic accidents, resulting in 334 fatalities and 6,794 injuries. Over the past 24 hours alone, there have been 17 serious accidents reported, leading to one death and injuring 23 individuals, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Specifically, on Wednesday, September 18, vehicles collided near the KTEL Kifisou area in the direction towards Piraeus.

In a second incident, two vehicles collided on Kifisou Avenue near Iera Odos, in the direction towards Lamia.

Road accidents in Greece are increasingly taking on the characteristics of a war between the pedestrian and the driver. Data from the traffic police confirm what we experience every day. In the first five months of 2024, the number of pedestrians hit by a moving vehicle in the country came to 653, of whom 27 lost their lives and another 26 were seriously injured.

If there’s one accessory common to all modern cars, it’s cup holders. “And now, what will happen to the cup holders that will remain empty of coffee?” Greek drivers wonder in light of the new Road Code provision, which imposes a €100 fine and a 30-day driving license suspension for those who drive while drinking coffee. However, this is the least of the concerns for “reckless” drivers.

A 55-year-old driver was arrested in the northern port city of Thessaloniki over the weekend after he injured a traffic officer with his vehicle.

Police in Attica conducted around 52,500 traffic inspections and issued almost 18,000 fines for various motoring offenses over the summer.

In the three months from June to August, police issued over 8,800 fines for failing to wear a helmet, almost 2,500 for not using a seat belt, 1,500 for speeding, 117 for dangerous maneuvers and 80 for "showing off."

Traffic on the Athens-Corinth national road was disrupted in both directions on Friday following an accident involving a tanker truck.

The vehicle overturned under unknown circumstances, igniting a significant blaze at the 56th kilometer of the highway near the seaside town of Kineta. It is not currently known what the truck was carrying.

Disruption was observed on Wednesday afternoon (31/7) to vehicular traffic on the descent of Alexandra Avenue due to the fall of a tree.

It all happened when a motorbike -under unknown circumstances so far- at the height of Mavromataion Street collided with the tree, resulting in its fall.

New analysis published by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) shows that in the past year 2023 there were 20,418 deaths on EU roads. These figures show that deaths on European roads have fallen by just 1% compared to 2022. To meet the EU's target of a 50% reduction in road deaths by 2030, an annual drop of at least 6.1 is needed %.