661 road deaths in 2019

In 2019, the Netherlands counted 661 road deaths: only 17 road deaths less than in 2018, according to figures released by Statistics Netherlands (CBS) on April 15th. In 2018, the number of road deaths showed an considerable increase of almost 11%. In recent years, road safety in the Netherlands has shown no improvement.

These cold numbers underline the importance of the Dutch Road Safety Strategic Plan 2030. In that plan, the Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management, Van Nieuwenhuizen, expressed an overarching ambition for 2050: 'On the way to zero road casualties'. To contribute to that ambition, the Dutch cabinet released 50 million Euros per year to support municipal and provincial road authorities in taking effective road safety measures, such as improving the safety of municipal and provincial roads. Besides taking measures to prevent road crashes, it is important to keep learning from road crashes, by, among other things, investigating each fatal road crash in the Netherlands.

Towards the end of 2020 SWOV will publish her annual Road Safety Monitor (in Dutch only), including an analysis of road safety statistics.

More information about the number of road deaths: