ROAD ACCIDENTS IN FINLAND

Abstract

This article reports on road accidents in Finland. Fatal traffic accidents peaked in the 1970s and have been dropping in a fluctuating but essentially downward trend. The oil crisis of the 70s, which forced people to reduce their driving is doubtless a big factor. But this was also a time a major revamping of road safety in the country, with the introduction if speed limits on all roads, compulsory seat belts for front seat occupants and mandatory use of winter tires. Fatalities had occasional spikes and began growing in the 1980s with the economic growth, but began to fall after the economic crisis of 1990 cut travel. In the 1990's efforts focused on young drivers, with new training, including night exercises, driving on slippery conditions and stricter controls for repeat young offenders. The major accident reduction in this time occurred among the young driver groups. Studies show that today's novice drivers achieve the skills of experienced drivers in three to four years thanks to the training.

Document type: Article