Decrease in Road Traffic Fatalities in 2025

SadaNews - Statistics from the Palestinian police's traffic management indicate a significant decrease in road traffic fatalities during the year 2025, with a decline of 2.7% compared to 2024, reflecting ongoing efforts by the police to enhance road safety and reduce traffic risks.

The police spokesperson, Major Luay Erziqat, stated that the traffic department recorded 15,088 road accidents in 2025, resulting in the deaths of 108 individuals from various age groups, compared to 111 fatalities recorded in 2024. This indicates a relative decrease in death tolls despite ongoing challenges related to traffic congestion and the rising number of vehicles.

Erziqat added that these accidents also resulted in the injury of 10,755 individuals, including 168 serious injuries. The injuries were concentrated mainly in the Nablus and Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorates. The age group between 18 and 45 years was the most affected by injuries, followed by the age group of 7 to 17 years, and then individuals over 45 years, while the lowest injury rates were recorded among children under seven years old.

He clarified that the majority of traffic fatalities were also concentrated within the age group of 18 to 45 years, followed by those over 45, which highlights the dangers of unsafe traffic behaviors among the most frequent users of vehicles and roads.

Regarding the main causes of traffic accidents, Erziqat confirmed that road accidents are fundamentally caused by traffic violations and non-compliance with traffic laws, signals, and signs. He indicated that the statistics showed that failing to maintain a safe distance between vehicles ranked first among the causes of accidents, followed by neglecting necessary safety measures for pedestrians and road users, veering off the driving lane, and improper turns. Other causes included speeding, failure to yield, ignoring traffic lights and stop signs, and other violations that directly contribute to accidents.

Erziqat noted that the Ramallah and Al-Bireh governorate recorded the highest number of traffic accidents among the total incidents registered, followed by Nablus and Hebron, reflecting the high traffic density and increasing economic activity in these governorates, while Tubas recorded the lowest number of traffic accidents for the year.

As part of the police's efforts to reduce traffic accidents and enhance road safety, the traffic management implemented extensive field campaigns and daily monitoring programs, inspecting 665,420 vehicles to ensure their technical readiness and roadworthiness. Additionally, 8,881 vehicles were removed from the streets for rehabilitation and licensing due to failure to meet safety standards. The police also confiscated 10,340 vehicles to verify their legality and destroyed 3,144 vehicles for being unfit for road use, along with issuing 255,563 traffic violations against offending drivers, as part of enforcing the law and enhancing road discipline.

The police confirmed that these efforts will continue in partnership with citizens and community institutions through traffic awareness and promoting a culture of compliance with traffic laws, as road safety is a collective responsibility that begins with driver behavior and ends with protecting human life on the roads.