Accidents in the local area

Drivers off the gas! Keep your eyes open for schoolchildren

Children are exempt from the principle of trust, which should be reflected in their driving behavior. Nevertheless, the number of accidents in the local area is increasing year on year.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

Last year, 73 children in Burgenland were injured in road traffic accidents. Two thirds of these accidents happened in the local area.

In the past ten years, 500 children from Burgenland have been injured on the roads. Around two thirds of the accidents occurred in the local area. One child from the Oberwart district did not survive a collision with a car.

On foot or by bike
The number of accidents is rising steadily. While there were 34 in 2021 and 59 a year later, there were 73 incidents in 2023. Overall, children were most frequently involved in accidents as car occupants, as a recent analysis by the mobility organization VCÖ shows. In the local area, every third child injured in a traffic accident was on foot or on a bicycle - usually on the way to school.

"A high level of road safety on the way to school is very important. After all, the way to school is a great opportunity for children to learn and regularly practice correct behavior in road traffic," says VCÖ expert Katharina Jaschinsky. "If children are chauffeured to school by car, this opportunity is taken away from them."

Report danger spots!
The VCÖ would like to work with the public to identify danger spots on the way to school. Problem areas can be entered and described on an online map at www.vcoe.at until October 31. Danger spots in 22 municipalities have already been reported to the VCÖ.