Poland has seen a sharp decline in the number of road deaths over the past four years, according to a new report by the European Commission.
The report, published on March 18, shows that the number of road deaths in Poland declined by 35% in the years 2019-2024. The report found that last year there were 52 road deaths per million inhabitants, the same as in 2023.
Although the Polish figure is high compared to the EU average of 44 for 2024, it is well below that of Romania, Europe’s worst offender, where there were 77 deaths per million inhabitants. The safest roads were found in Sweden and Denmark, which posted figures of 20 and 24, respectively.
The European Commission provided no explanation for the substantial reduction in road fatalities in Poland, but the drop may reflect a concerted effort by the Polish authorities to make the country’s roads safer.
A few years ago the government introduced the €8.82 billion National Road Safety program for 2021-2030, with the aim of improving safety standards on Poland’s road network, as well as the quality of infrastructure.
According to figures from the Polish Road Safety Observatory, the number of fatalities on Polish roads declined from 2,245 in 2021 to 1,896 last year.
On the whole, the European Commission report found that road deaths across the EU in 2024 fell by 3% compared to the previous year.
The report, however, stressed: “Road safety progress across the EU remains uneven, with some countries making significant strides while others struggle to reduce fatalities.”
