July has been the most mournful month of the year on Finnish roads.
According to the latest data published by Statistics Finland, 25 people lost their lives in traffic accidents, the highest number so far this year. In previous months, the death toll on the road had been 19 in June, 13 in May and 12 in April. So far, the highest record had been in March, with 20 deaths.
The increase in the number of fatalities in July coincides with a summer complicated by the coronavirus pandemic. Thousands of Finns chose to travel within Finland by road to spend their holidays instead of going abroad.
Statistics Finland says 315 accidents involving personal injury happened in road traffic in July. In them, in addition to the above mentioned 25 fatalities, 390 people were injured.
The number of people killed was 4 higher than in July 2019. However, the number of injured was 123 lower compared to one year before.
Source: Statistics Finland.
Of the persons who were killed, 16 travelled by passenger car and 5 by motorcycle. Pedestrians killed in road traffic accidents numbered 2 and cyclists 2.
Among those who died, 21 were men and 4 were women. The number of men killed in traffic accidents is five times higher than that of women.
January-July
A total of 1,918 road traffic accidents involving personal injury happened in January to July period. In them, 127 persons were killed and 2,360 persons injured.
The number of persons killed was 5 higher and that of persons injured 415 lower than in the corresponding period of 2019.
Of the persons who were killed, 77 travelled by passenger car, 6 by van, 11 by motorcycle and 3 by lorry. Pedestrians killed numbered 13 and cyclists 13. In addition, five other road users were killed.
