Aging of the Population and Road Safety

The aging of the population is a growing reality in Basque society that all Administrations are tackling from different perspectives and areas with a clear objective: ensuring the welfare of our elderly.

From the Basque Government's Department of Safety and, specifically, from the Directorate of Traffic, we work every day to improve road safety on the streets and highways of Euskadi, as has been happening for a decade.

In this area, it is of vital importance and prominence the fact that the users of the roads are getting older, not only and pedestrians, but also and motorists, and the impact that this has on accident rates.

According to data recorded by the Ertzaintza, in 2013, a total of 809 drivers over the age of 64 were involved in traffic accidents in Euskadi. And of the total of 56 people who died in traffic accidents, 17 were over the age of 64.

Without a doubt, it is the great challenge of the coming years and, as a result, the Traffic Department is actively working on raising awareness in the population most vulnerable to the risks associated with traffic and working with various municipalities to find measures.

The result of this institutional collaboration is the 'Aging of the population and road safety' conference, which the Basque Government's Department of Safety has organised in collaboration with the Department of Social Action of the Provincial Council of Bizkaia, to be held at the Palacio de Euskalduna in Bilbao on 8 May.