55% of Drivers in Bulgaria drive at Excessive Speed in Populated Areas

55% of the drivers in Bulgaria operate motor vehicles at an excessive speed in populated areas. This is one of the conclusions of the completed two-year Baseline project, on which the State Agency "Road Traffic Safety" is working together with 18 EU countries. The indicators have been determined by the EC and it is expected that through them, the main causes of traffic accidents will be established with greater accuracy.

The project will continue with a new measurement of these key indicators, the aim of which is to measure the high-risk behavior of road users with periodic frequency in order to track the effect of the measures taken, explained Dr. Milen Markov from the State Agency " Road safety':

"Our recommendations are in three directions: Improve driver training, increase driver awareness and tighten controls."

At 80 kilometers per hour, the car's speed will cause a tragic accident for the pedestrian if the situation happened on a pedestrian path, Dr. Markov pointed out.

The other key indicators that have been investigated in the project are drink-driving, use of seat belts and child restraint systems, distraction and helmet use by cyclists and motorcyclists.

The data were collected at 282 locations on the territory of the country in populated and non-populated places, including highways.