44 dead and 6,370 injured: that is the tragic death toll from the 3,913 road accidents that occurred during the recent holidays in Turkey on the occasion of the Feast of Sacrifice (one of the most important in the Islamic religious calendar), according to final figures released by Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, who thanked the drivers who obeyed the rules and offered his condolences to the families of the deceased.
In a statement published on social media, and reported by several media outlets in Turkey, Yerlikaya stressed that the 44 fatalities occurred in road accidents caused by non-compliance with traffic rules, and were therefore deaths that could have been prevented: “48.1% were for speeding, 18.5% for lane-discipline violations, 14.9% right-of-way violations, 3.7% related to turning rules, 1.8% for rear-end collisions due to failure to keep a safe distance, and 13% for other offences.” 18 of the fatalities occurred in residential areas, and 36 outside of them, the minister said.
Yerlikaya also stressed that the number of fatal accidents was significantly lower on roads where radars were installed at 30-35 km intervals: “Thank God, on motorways with a speed limit of 140 km/h there were zero fatalities. On motorways with a speed limit of 130 km/h, unfortunately two people died. In areas with fewer radars and speed limits between 50 and 80 km/h, we lost 22 citizens; and in areas with speed limits between 90 and 110 km/h, 20 people died. Among the 44 fatalities, 14 were motorbike drivers or passengers“.
According to the minister, a total of 68,829 police and gendarmes were on duty during the four public holidays and the eve of the Feast of the Sacrifice, when most of the journeys took place, including 3,000 plainclothes officers who travelled camouflaged as passengers on intercity buses. In addition, 1,485 mobile radar units were used and 6,399 hours of aerial inspections were carried out using drones and helicopters. An average of 15,153 drivers per day were fined for speeding: 2,688 on motorways and 12,465 on other roads.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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