& # 039; This country cannot bear more deaths. When driving extreme precautions & # 039 ;, message of the new DGT campaign


The minister has been accompanied by the undersecretary of the Ministry of the Interior, Isabel Goicoechea, and the director general of Traffic, Pere Navarro.

Grande Marlaska has started her intervention mentioning the exceptional year that we are living due to the Coronavirus, a pandemic that has affected the world and that makes this a different summer and a different traffic operation.

This circumstance and the pain that the Coronavirus has caused and is still generating in our country is the reference from which the General Directorate of Traffic has designed its informative campaign for social networks, establishing an analogy between the Coronavirus pandemic and the pandemic which, ultimately, are traffic accidents.

The Coronavirus health crisis has taught us as a society the importance of complying with the regulations and precautions that we have to have so that the virus does not spread, similar behaviors to those that must be adopted to deal with traffic accidents.

The use of a mask, social distancing and hand hygiene is what the seat belt and helmet, the safety distance, speed and attention to driving are to road safety to Coronavirus. Hence, an appeal is made to responsibility and collaboration, two axes that have been present in the midst of the pandemic and that must continue to be in force as key elements to provide us with greater safety on the roads.

"The desire to recover the new normality cannot lead us to commit recklessness on the road, since on more occasions than desired these recklessness usually end in fatal accidents, therefore, if we have overcome the most acute phase of the Coronavirus we cannot spoil it in the highway, because this country can not bear more deaths, "said the minister.

Minister Marlaska during the presentation of the DGT summer campaignTo transfer this message, the Olympic skater and 2-time world champion Javier Fernández have been used, who after all these months without being able to skate returns to a place full of symbolism such as the Ice Palace in Madrid, which was enabled as a morgue during the Covid-19 health crisis.

Javier's desire to skate is similar to society's desire to regain normality, but both situations must be handled responsibly. Metaphorically, the video shows Javier as if he were the vehicle and the ice rink as if it were a road. A bad jump or an inadequate speed of rotation can have fatal consequences for the skater; the same as when the driver adopts risky driving behaviors.

A documentary has been produced, which will be available throughout the summer, with testimonies from people who have been at the forefront of the pandemic and who invite the viewer to reflect.

About displacement

As previously mentioned, due to the situation in the country, the summer of 2020 is a different summer than the one we have experienced previously, even to be able to forecast long-distance journeys that may occur by road during these two months, not only because of the citizens' distrust of this situation, but also due to the uncertainty of travel.

However, there are certain circumstances that we know of and that influence the development of mobility:

  • The recovery of traffic is being progressive, even so there are 20% fewer trips than in the same period last year.
  • The current situation conditions displacement.
  • Weekend or short-term departures will predominate.
  • Displacements will increase in the accesses to large urban centers in search of leisure activities in the vicinity of the cities, that is, day-long trips to places close to the cities.
  • There are 20% fewer requests to hold sporting events during the summer, so road traffic conditions are reduced.

With all these circumstances, at the end of July a series of data will be released that will allow us to get a closer idea of ​​the behavior of traffic in this new scenario of normality.

Calendar

Despite this scenario of uncertainty, the General Directorate of Traffic continues to maintain special summer operations.

  • First Exit Summer Operation: from Friday, July 3 to Sunday, July 5.
  • Departure First of August: Friday, July 31 until Sunday, August 2.
  • Special Operation August 15: from Friday August 14 to Sunday August 16.
  • Summer Return: from Friday, August 28 to Monday, August 31.

As all these operations coincide with weekends, in which the intensity of vehicles is greater, it is recommended to plan trips avoiding the busiest days and hours so as not to find departure delays from large cities.

Summer device

Regarding traffic management and to facilitate road mobility, the following measures will be established:

  • Installation of reversible and additional rails with cones when necessary in sections of certain roads.
  • Dynamic signaling through 2,200 variable message panels of the main traffic variables.
  • Stoppage of works that affect the roads on all roads to minimize the impact on traffic during the days of the summer departure-return operation.
  • Restriction of the movement of trucks that transport dangerous goods and vehicles that require special authorization to circulate at certain times of the day with the most movements.
  • Continuous information on any incident on the road through the 011 telephone, the Internet, twitter and in the newsletters of the radio stations.

For this summer campaign the DGT has the following means:

  • 1,324 speed control points, of them:

– 548 mobile radars

– 12 helicopters

– 764 fixed speed control points (80 of them section)

  • 216 cameras for telephone and mobile control.
  • 11 drones for regulation and management activities that will reactivate its activity on July 3. Three of them with reporting capacity.
  • 15 camouflaged vans, one in each sector.

In addition, the schedule of surveillance intensification campaigns that were suspended due to the state of alarm is resumed. During these two months there will be a speed campaign, another one for motorists and a last one for alcohol and drugs at the wheel.

Sinistralidad summer 2019

In the summer of last year, 215 people died in traffic accidents (117 died in July and 98 in August) and 891 were seriously injured. It was the summer with the fewest deaths since statistics are available, so the goal is to lower those figures.

The radiography of the accident rate was as follows:

  • 7 out of 10 deaths occurred in fatal accidents that took place on conventional highways, that is, those roads that have no separation of directions of movement. Therefore, pay attention to short trips on these roads, which is where drivers have to exercise extreme caution and the DGT will reinforce vigilance.
  • Almost half of the fatal accidents (45%) were off the road. Behind this type of accident there is usually excessive speed and / or some distraction.
  • 43% of those killed during the summer were vulnerable. In 2010 they represented 30%. Therefore, a double message:

– Appeal to the drivers of four-wheeled vehicles, (which are the ones that generate the risk) to respect the other road users.

– Appeal to motorists, cyclists and pedestrians to exercise extreme caution as they are the most vulnerable.

  • Use of the belt and helmet. Last summer 7 of the 10 deceased cyclists were not wearing the helmet. Neither 4 of the 69 deceased motorists, nor 23 of the deceased who traveled in tourism or van made use of the safety belt. The seat belt is the device that has saved the most lives.
  • The time slot with the highest concentration of accidents is after eating (36% of fatal accidents between 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.)

In addition to these parameters, DGT is still concerned:

  • Motorcycle users, being the only means of travel that reduces their accident rate. Manufacturers, motorcycle associations, the Civil Guard of traffic and the DGT are working to propose measures that reduce the accident rate of this group.
  • Alcohol and driving. 24% of autopsies performed on deceased drivers had high blood alcohol rates. The message is simple: if you drink do not drive and if someone who is with you has drunk, it is your responsibility not to let them drive.
  • Speed: After three months without driving, pay attention to impulsive driving and excessive speed. Freedom cannot be confused with speed. It is not worth the risk.

The minister ended the presentation remembering the message with which he began and which summarizes the awareness campaign "This country cannot bear more deaths. When driving extreme precautions."



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