According to the provisional road accident balance for the past year, 11 people died in traffic accidents on interurban roads in La Rioja and another 44 were seriously injured. These figures represent 5 fewer deaths from traffic accidents than in 2019, the reference year and prior to the pandemic, and 2 more than in 2022.
The Government delegate in La Rioja, Beatriz Arraiz Nalda, and the Provincial Head of Traffic, Beatriz Zúñiga Reinares, presented this Wednesday the provisional balance of the sinister recorded on the interurban roads of Rioja during 2023. The figures presented are provisional and refer only to the fatal accidents that occurred on interurban roads and victims recorded up to 24 hours after the accident occurred. The final figures already consolidated, which will include the victims within 30 days of accidents occurring in urban and interurban roads, will allow us to have the complete radiography of road accidents in the autonomous community in 2023.
In 2023 there were a total of 226 road accidents with victims on interurban roads in La Rioja, of which 9 deaths with 11 deaths - 4 of the victims died in 2 multiple accidents.
The delegate of the Government has pointed out that it is worrying that 10 of the deceased travelled on national roads, an important aspect that implies that it must be invested in road safety.
For this reason, Arraiz Nalda has pointed out that road infrastructures such as the one that has been planned to condition the N-232 road between the end of the variant of Villar de Arnedo and Arrúbal, for the conditioning of the aforementioned stretch as road 2+1 and that is characterized by the provision of an additional overtaking lane to allow such manoeuvre in an alternative and regulated way between both directions of circulation, are fundamental to improve safety on the roads.
He added that priority is given to investment in the conservation of State roads, which is aimed at, among others, the superficial and/or structural rehabilitation of firm, improvements of links or intersections, reorganization of access and installation, replacement, repair or improvement of road elements.
On the other hand, the delegate wanted to make an appeal to the drivers. “The commitment of the Government of Spain to improve road safety also requires greater self-responsibility of drivers and users of our roads.”
In this regard, he recalled that traffic accidents are mostly avoidable and reducing those tragic figures is in our hands, if we all redouble our efforts to that end. “The responsibility of drivers is fundamental because avoiding distractions, respecting traffic rules and using safety systems are three simple elements that can greatly reduce these dramatic figures and the human tragedies behind them,” he reiterated.
In this way, he has specified that, of the 9 accidents with fatalities, the cause of 5 was distraction, which was added in one of them not to maintain the safety distance, and in another 3, inadequate speed in driving. The last one was caused by an unexpected illness of the driver.
In addition, one of the deceased did not wear a safety belt, the most important element for passive safety because it is the only brake on the body in case of impact, both for the driver and for the rest of passengers, both in the front and rear seats. Without this device, for example, in a crash at 80 km/h against a rigid object the occupants of the car would be thrown forward with a force 80 times greater than their weight.
For her part, the Provincial Traffic Chief has reiterated that after assessing the causes of the fatal accidents that occurred in 2023, mainly distractions and inadequate speed, “we confirmed that there was a human factor behind them, which meant that they could have been avoided, or at least, diminished their consequences, if prudence existed.”
In addition, Zúñiga Reinares explained that the two fatalities of this summer were motorcyclists, being the vulnerable group that, not only in La Rioja, but nationally, has more increased its accident. He has also detailed that in 10% of accidents with victims, the driver was influenced by the consumption of alcohol and/or drugs while driving.
For all these reasons, he insisted that “it is necessary for all of us to be responsible on the road, since our reckless conduct can give rise to these sinister roads, often avoidable”.
In depth
By type of routes: In 2023, for the type of road in which the sinister road with fatal victims happened: 10 on roads of the State Network -6 on the N-232 and 4 on the N-111- and 1 on the Autonomous Network -LR-281-. Of these, 7 were driven as drivers or passengers in passenger cars, 2 on motorcycles and 2 in vans.
The accidents with victims according to the ownership of the road were:
The evolution of the mortal victims in La Rioja during the last years is as follows:
(See table)
Type of accident: In interurban roads, of the 11 fatalities recorded in 2023, 10 were due to collisions - 7 due to frontal collision, 2 due to front-side collision and 1 due to multiple collision - and 1 due to overturning.
Direct causes of accidents: The cause of 5 of the 9 fatal accidents that occurred last year was distraction, which was compounded by one of them not keeping the safety distance. In another 3 there was an inadequate speed in driving and one was due to an unexpected illness of the driver.
Condition, sex and age of victims and drivers causing accidents: A total of 9 men and 2 women lost their lives on interurban roads in La Rioja during 2023.
The age group of 40 to 49 years is the one in which the highest number of deaths has been caused (4).
- 18 to 29 years: 1
- 30 to 39 years: 2
- 40 to 49: 4
- 50 to 59 years: 2
- 60 to 69 years: 2
As for the sex of the drivers who caused the accidents with fatalities, the 8 involved in them were men. The ages of the same:
- 18 to 29 years: 1
- 30 to 39 years: 2
- 40 to 49: 2
- 50 to 59 years: 2
- 60 to 69 years: